TORY 


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FROM   THE   LIBRARY  OF 
REV.   LOUIS    FITZGERALD    BENSON,   D.  D. 

BEQUEATHED    BY   HIM   TO 

THE   LIBRARY  OF 

PRINCETON  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY 


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Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Library 


http://archive.org/details/storyOObutt 


ur  nt//v^ 


JAN  23  1933 


THE 


glory  of  the  ^anes. 


FOR  HOME  READING,  PRAISE  MEETINGS, 
AND  LECTURES  ON  SACRED  MUSIC. 


ILLUSTRATED  WITH  ANECDOTES. 


V 

HEZEKIAH  BUTTER  WORTH,  A.  M., 

AUTHOR   OF  "THE   STORY   OF   THE    HYMNS." 


AMERICAN  TRACT  SOCIETY, 

150   NASSAU   STREET,    NEW   YORK. 


COPYRIGHT,  1890, 
AMERICAN  TRACT  SOCIETY. 


CONTENTS. 


Illustrations 4 

Introduction 5 

The  Praise-Meeting  and  its  Music 12 

The  Tune-Writers 15 

The  Missionary  Praise-Service 1S7 

Christmas  Caro's    .  195 

Old  Revival  Melodies .        .  205 

The  Authors  of  Preludes,  Interludes,  and  Postludes.        .         .211 
Praise-Meeting  Anecdotes  of  the  Mission  of  Music     .         .        .221 

The  New  Song 237 

Index  and  Notes 243 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Mason,  Lowell Frontispiece. 

Bliss,  P.  P 17 

Handel,  George  Frederick 36 

Haydn,  Joseph 39 

Gustavus  Adolphus 41 

Elliott,  Charlotte 43 

Phillips,  Philip 65 

Luther,  Martin 74 

Heber,  Reginald 114 

Muhlenberg,  W.  H 121 

Sankey,  Ira  D.               126 

Bonar,  Horatius 128 

Palmer,  Ray 134 

Bach,  Johann  Sebastian 145 

Ken,  Thomas 169 

Mozart,  J.  C.  W.  A 200 

I  lavergal,  Frances  Ridley 229 

Calvin,  John 245 


INTRODUCTION 


The  volume  to  which  this  is  intended  to  be  a 
companion  was  published  in  1875,  under  the  title  of 
u  The  Story  of  the  Hymns."  The  George  Wood  Gold 
Medal  for  that  year  was  awarded  to  the  book,  and  it 
has  passed  through  numerous  editions,  including  an 
edition  de  luxe. 

It  was  written  as  a  spiritual  help  to  the  intelligent 
singing  and  use  of  hymns,  but  it  soon  found  an  unex- 
pected field:  it  was  made  the  text-book  of  Praise 
Services  in  many  churches,  the  story  of  the  hymn 
being  told  in  the  pulpit  before  the  singing  of  it  by  the 
congregation  or  choir.  The  people  were  thus  in- 
structed in  the  religious  experiences  of  the  originators 
of  the  hymns,  and  the  reflex  influence  in  some  in- 
stances proved  the  beginning  of  spiritual  revivals. 

The  author  has  been  impressed  with  the  thought 
that  the  experiences  of  the  tune-writers  would  make 
an  interesting  addition  and  companion  to  the  earlier 
work,  especially  for  the  purpose  of  the  Praise  Service. 
So  strong  was  the  impression  that  from  time  to  time 
he  has  turned  aside  from  a  busy  life  to  secure  and 
collect,  from  the  most  trustworthy  sources,  histories 
and  anecdotes  of  tunes  that  he  regarded  as  useful  to 
leaders  of  Praise-Meetings  by  illustrating  the  spiritual 
value  of  music  in  worship.     The  Praise  Service  meets 


6  INTR  OD  UCTION. 

the  needs  of  many  small  towns  and  neighborhoods 
where  regular  preaching  cannot  be  secured.  Christian 
people  are  called  together  to  hear  the  Word  of  God 
read  and  to  sing  his  praise,  and  such  services  have 
often  proved  the  beginning  of  an  enduring  gospel 
work. 

To  help  the  leader  of  such  meetings  to  make  the 
service  effective  for  good  seemed  to  the  author  a  useful 
work.  In  prosecuting  it  he  has  had  the  friendship  of 
some  of  the  most  popular  and  intelligent  writers  of 
church  music  and  gospel  hymns. 

That  the  volume  may  prove  helpful  both  in  the 
Praise  Service  and  the  Christian  home,  is  the  author's 
earnest  desire.  He  could  not  include  the  history  of  all 
popular  hymn-tunes,  but  only  that  of  such  as  seem  to 
best  meet  the  present  experience  of  the  church  and  the 
wants  of  private  devotion. 

As  to  the  true  value  of  a  hymn-tune,  the  law  that  the 
best  survives,  and  that  that  is  the  best  which  will 
do  the  most  good,  is  as  true  of  hymns  and  tunes  as  of 
other  human  efforts;  the  best  in  sacred  music,  however, 
is  not  always  that  which  most  closely  follows  the  rules 
of  musical  or  technical  art  or  the  standards  of  the 
schools,  but  that  which  is  most  spiritual  and  inspiring. 

Grand  compositions  of  perfect  workmanship  often 
become  lost  to  music  as  the  years  go  by,  while  a 
simple  strain  that  truly  interprets  the  soul  lives  and 
becomes  immortal.  The  hymn  so  well  known  as 
u  Jesus,  lover  of  my  soul  "  will  not  bear  close  literary 
criticism  and  analysis,  but  it  is  the  true  language  of 


INTRODUCTION.  7 

the  soul,  and  will  outlive  the  more  ambitious  work  of 
the  rhetorician.  Pleyel  rilled  France  with  his  works 
and  the  world  with  his  fame,  and  he  could  hardly 
have  dreamed  that  the  simple  soul-melody  known  in 
all  lands  as  "  Pleyel's  Hymn"  would  keep  alive  his 
name  when  the  numerous  secular  works  with  which 
he  pleased  the  ear  of  his  own  time  should  cease  to  be 
heard.  It  is  because  of  the  spiritual  value  of  the  tune 
that  the  church  holds  it  among  her  jewels. 

Many  of  the  so-called  "Gospel  Hymn"  tunes  of  to- 
day will  undoubtedly  be  made  more  perfect  and  will 
outlive  more  elaborate  work,  because  they  well-nigh 
perfectly  express  the  needs,  aspirations,  and  experi- 
ences of  the  heart.  To  express  what  is  spiritual 
requires  not  simply  genius;  it  implies  a  spiritual  fire. 
Criticism  has  little  influence  in  such  matters;  the  soul 
recognizes  its  own  tongue.  "He  is  a  genius,"  says 
a  great  thinker,  "who  gives  me  back  my  own 
thoughts."  It  is  so  with  hymn-music.  From  this 
point  of  view  the  authors  of  many  gospel  hymns, 
while  we  could  wish  the  art- work  more  perfect,  are  yet 
deserving  of  a  more  worthy  place  and  name  in  music 
than  they  receive  from  the  schools. 

It  is  a  rare  gift  to  be  able,  by  any  art,  to  catch  and 
express  the  spirit  of  things,  and  it  is  almost  a  prophetic 
gift  to  be  able  thus  to  interpret  spiritual  life  and  to 
form  language  for  the  inner  tongue  to  express  the  un- 
seen revelations  of  divine  love.  "Spiritual  things  are 
spiritually  discerned,"  and  the  church  will  always  find 
her  voice  in  many  tunes  which  fashionable  art  ignores. 


8  INTRODUCTION. 

The  best  music  for  the  church  is  that  which  is  the 
most  spiritual,  and  of  this  quality  secular  schools  and 
undevout  minds,  whatever  may  be  their  accomplish- 
ments, can  be  but  imperfect  judges.  The  church,  to 
be  true  to  her  mission,  must  ever  select  her  own  tunes 
in  accordance  with  her  own  inward  experiences  and 
outward  needs.  But  the  great  tunes  of  the  church, 
like  the  great  hymns  of  the  church,  in  which  spirit- 
uality and  art  unite,  are  the  imperishable  monuments 
of  the  soul's  progress;  and  consecrated  art  is  one  of  the 
soul's  best  offerings  to  God.  While  the  broad  mind 
will  never  undervalue  a  simple  gospel  hymn  that  goes 
out  to  the  world  to  reform,  comfort,  and  help,  it  must 
ever  find  its  highest  expression  of  praise  in  the  grand 
music  of  the  greatest  spiritual  composers,  and  must  feel 
even  in  that  the  inadequacy  of  human  art  to  express 
what  is  infinite  in  goodness  and  boundless  in  love. 
"God  is  greatly  to  be  praised:"  this  was  the  in- 
spiring thought  of  old  Hebrew  Psalms  and  of  the 
temple's  oratorios. 

"  Come,  let  us  adore  him  ;  come,  bow  at  his  feet ; 
Oh,  give  him  the  glory,  the  praise  that  is  meet; 
Let  joyful  hosannas  unceasing  arise, 
And  join  the  full  chorus  that  gladdens  the  skies." 

A  number  of  interesting  books  have  been  written 
on  hymn-writers,  giving  the  history  of  hymns,  but  no 
book,  so  far  as  we  know,  has  been  written  on  the 
authors  of  hymn-tunes.  The  music  is  half  of  every 
grand  hymn,  the  chariot  of  the  soul  of  song.  The 
notes  convey  impressions  as  well  as  the  words,  and 


INTRODUCTION.  9 

the  tune-writer,  as  well  as  the  hymn-writer,  is  a  spirit- 
ual benefactor. 

One  pleasant  June  day  we  rode  from  Wakefield  to  a 
bowery  old  farm  in  Reading,  because  we  were  told 
that  there  Dr.  George  F.  Root  used  to  live,  and  that 
there,  amid  a  saintly  family,  he  had  been  inspired  to 
write  many  of  those  tunes  which  have  become  voices 
in  the  churches.  We  knew  something  of  the  influ- 
ence of  such  tunes  in  gospel  work  and  progress;  we 
thought  of  the  single  tune  called  the  u  Shining 
Shore" — how  it  had  found  a  place  in  the  memory  of 
every  American  Protestant  Christian,  was  well  known 
in  England,  was  a  favorite  in  Scotland,  was  familiar  in 
Germany,  and  had  gone  with  the  missionary  into  all 
lands.  It  was  a  pleasure  to  walk  about  the  old  house 
and  amid  the  orchards  and  pine  groves  where  such 
spiritual  inspiration  was  born,  and  we  still  retain 
pleasant  memories  of  the  old  North  Reading  "  Willow 
Farm." 

We  recently  visited  by  invitation  a  lovely  Christian 
home  on  Shawmut  Avenue,  Boston,  to  see  the  old 
melodeon  on  which  Oliver  Holden  composed  the 
hymn-tune  "  Coronation,"  nearly  one  hundred  years 
ago  (1792).  Perronet's  words  are  inspiring,  but  they 
would  have  been  wingless  without  the  tune.  What  a 
flame  of  fire  has  that  tune  been  to  untold  millions 
of  aspiring  souls  in  all  lands  for  so  many  years! 

America  has  produced  few  great  musical  works 
that  are  known  in  other  lands  and  that  have  entered 
into  the  common  experience  of  mankind;    but   her 


io  INTRODUCTION. 

simple  hymn-tunes  are  everywhere  recognized  as  true 
spiritual  inspirations,  and  are  sung  in  all'  Christian 
lands.  They  have  become,  as  it  were,  a  universal 
spiritual  language.  The  street  boy  in  London  knows 
them;  the  old  Scottish  woman  in  her  simple  cottage, 
the  boatmen  on  the  Rhine,  the  street  Arabs  of  Con- 
stantinople, and  the  half-naked  children  on  the  islands 
of  the  southern  seas  are  familiar  with  them.  They 
are  sung  on  Sabbath  evenings  in  palaces;  they  are 
sung  on  the  steamers  that  cross  the  sea. 

"What  shall  we  sing?"  asked  a  minister  in  the 
steerage  of  an  English  steamer;  "it  must  be  some- 
thing that  we  all  know,  and  here  are  gathered  people 
from  nearly  all  the  countries  of  Europe." 

"Then  it  must  be  an  American  hymn-tune,"  said 
the  master  of  the  steerage.     * '  Try  (  His  Jewels. ' ' ' 

There  were   a   thousand    people    in   the  steerage 

whose  future  home  was  to  be  America;  very  many  of 

them  knew  that  simple  air.      The  very  chimes  in  the 

old  steeples  had  taught  it  to  them.      So  the  song  arose 

as  one  voice: 

"  When  he  cometh, 
When  he  cometh 
To  make  up  his  jewels." 

"Now  what  shall  we  have  next?"  asked  the  min- 
ister. 

"'What  a  Friend  we  have  in  Jesus!'"  was  the 
answer. 

That  song  followed  in  thret  different  languages  as 
one  voice. 


INTRODUCTION.  n 

The  ship  landed  at  Quebec;  the  thousand  emi- 
grants rilled  two  long  trains  of  cars,  one  train  going 
east  and  the  other  towards  the  Georgian  Bay.  As  the 
two  trains  separated  each  was  rilled  with  the  song, 
"When  he  cometh  !"  The  whistle  shrieked,  and  the 
words  died  away  amid  the  shadows  of  the  Canadian 
woods.  It  was  the  tune  that  had  made  the  hymn  a 
common  language. 

The  number  of  tunes  that  belong  to  the  general 
experience  of  the  Protestant  Church  is  not  large.  It 
is  being  increased  by  the  addition  of  the  most  spiritual 
tunes  and  musical  inspirations  of  the  Roman-catholic 
Church;  for  spiritual  music  becomes  universal,  what- 
ever its  source,  as  Christianity  itself  rises  above  its 
working  and  missionary  divisions. 

The  tunes  which  we  have  selected  for  notice  in 
this  volume  are  generally  familiar  to  Protestant  con- 
gregations or  in  use  in  the  choirs  of  most  evangelical 
churches.  The  historic  facts  concerning  many  of 
them  are  such  as  tend  to  add  to  the  estimate  in  which 
they  are  held  and  to  prove  spiritually  helpful  to  the 
singers  of  them. 


12  INTR  OD  UCTION. 


THE   PRAISE  MEETING  AND   ITS   MUSIC. 

The  Praise  Meeting,  as  we  now  term  the  special 
service  of  sacred  song,  originated  with  Dr.  Eben 
Tourjee,  Director  of  the  New  England  Conservatory 
of  Music,  in  the  Methodist  church  in  Warren,  Rhode 
Island,  where  a  part  of  Dr.  Tourjee' s  early  life  was 
spent  and  where  he  was  married.  For  this  Methodist 
church  he  has  preserved  a  strong  affection. 

Dr.  Eben  Tourjee  was  born  at  Warwick,  Rhode 
Island,  June  i,  1834.  He  was  of  Huguenot  descent. 
His  musical  inspiration  came  to  him  in  boyhood.  His 
parents  were  religious  people,  and  he  early  felt  an 
ambition  to  use  music  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel. 
Gov.  Harris  ot  Rhode  Island  had  noticed  young 
Tourjee' s  love  of  music,  and  said  to  him  on  one  occa- 
sion, 

' '  I  wish  that  you  would  learn  to  play  the  organ  as 
soon  as  possible.     Here  is  the  key." 

The  boy  took  the  key  with  a  trembling  hand  and 
went  to  the  church  organ,  on  which  he  had  never 
played  before.  That  organ  key  was  the  key  of  his 
destiny. 

His  early  life  was  a  struggle  with  poverty  under 
the  inspiration  of  great  and  noble  plans  and  ideals. 
To  make  music  a  service  of  God,  as  it  has  been  in  the 
land  of  Luther,  has  been  his  leading  aim.  The 
thought  expressed  by  Champlain  in  regard  to  the  new 
French  provinces  that  he  had  founded,  "  These  king- 


INTRODUCTION.  13 

doms  are  for  God,"  seems  to  be  the  ruling  idea  of  Dr. 
Tourjee  in  respect  to  music. 

Dr.  Tourjee,  with  the  best  of  opportunities  to  be- 
come a  rich  man,  conscientiously  remained  poor,  in 
order  the  better  to  give  his  life  to  his  calling  and 
art.  He  became  an  organist  and  public  singer,  organ- 
ized the  "Conservatory  of  Music"  at  the  Providence 
Conference  Seminary,  East  Greenwich,  R.  I. ;  estab- 
lished the  "New  England  Conservatory  of  Music," 
Boston;  secured  the  teaching  of  music  in  the  public 
schools  of  Massachusetts;  and  originated  the  plan  of 
Praise  Services,  which  he  promoted  by  lectures  and  by 
specimen  and  model  services  of  the  kind  in  many 
cities  and  towns.  The  New  England  Conservatory 
has  more  than  two  thousand  pupils  yearly,  and  it  is 
the  purpose  of  its  director  to  make  it  a  Christian 
home.  Employing  some  of  the  greatest  instructors  in 
the  world,  Dr.  Tourjee  has  never  lost  sight  of  his 
early  consecration. 

His  connection  with  the  great  "Peace  Jubilee"  is 
historic,  but  is  a  matter  of  minor  importance  in  com- 
parison with  his  service  in  the  great  choirs  and 
choruses  of  Boston  for  evangelistic  work.  Who  can 
ever  forget  the  chorus  which  he  organized  for  the 
Tabernacle  meeting  in  connection  with  the  work  of 
Messrs.  Moody  and  Sankey?  or  the  singing  by  that 
chorus  of  the  thrilling  gospel  song,  u  To  the  work  !  to 
the  work!" 

The  Christian  world  owes  him  a  debt  of  gratitude 
for  his  plan  of  Praise  Services,  voiced  in  the  people's 


i4  INTRODUCTION. 

music  of  all  lands.  His  devout  thought  and  sincerely 
religious  enthusiasm,  which  have  never  been  used  for 
any  selfish  end,  enter  into  them  all. 

The  plan  of  the  Praise  Meeting  is  somewhat  sim- 
ilar to  that  of  the  popular  English  Service  of  Song, 
with  connected  Scripture  readings,  the  design  of  the 
meeting  being  to  illustrate  a  single  subject  by  Scrip- 
ture and  song.  To-day  these  meetings  often  consist 
of  a  general  singing  of  familiar  tunes;  and  while  the 
grand  chorals  are  used  at  the  introduction  and  close, 
the  simple,  spiritual  music  of  Doane,  Lowry,  Main, 
Woodbury,  Bradbury,  Phillips,  Hull,  Murray,  Root, 
and  Bliss  fills  the  larger  part  of  the  hour.  In  all  such 
services  the  spirit  of  worship  should  reign  supreme, 
and  the  gratification  of  the  musical  faculty  should 
minister  to  the  religious  exercise.  People  desire  home 
singing,  or  the  spiritual  songs  of  the  heart,  for  the 
Praise  Service,  and  not  an  exhibition  of  high  art. 
Hence  the  German  chorals  and  American  tunes  are 
most  used. 

This  is  true  not  only  of  our  own  land,  but  also  of 
England.  There  it  is  customary  to  issue  programmes 
of  the  service  in  the  form  of  printed  tracts  or  leaflets, 
and  these  published  Praise  Services,  of  which  millions 
of  copies  have  been  sold,  are  filled  with  German  and 
American  music.  It  is  hoped  that  the  anecdotes 
which  have  been  added  to  the  brief  histories  of  many 
of  the  tunes  may  prove  helpful  to  the  directors  of 
such  services. 


THE 

TUNE-WRITERS 


ADESTE  FIDELES,  OR  PORTUGUESE  HYMN. 

MARCUS   PORTUGAL   1763-1S34.      ADAPTED   BY   JOHN   READING.      17 — . 

The  origin  of  the  hymn  is  uncertain;  it  was 
translated  from  the  Latin  by  Rev.  Frederic  Oakeley, 
about  1841. 

"Frederic  Oakeley  graduated  M.  A.  at  Oxford 
and  took  orders  in  the  Church  of  England.  He  be- 
came prebendary  of  Lichfield  Cathedral,  preacher  at 
Whitehall,  and  incumbent  of  Margaret  Chapel,  Lon- 
don. He  was  active  in  the  'Oxford  Movement,'  and 
in  1845  called  attention  to  his  views  for  the  purpose 
of  seeing  if  he  could  continue  to  hold  an  Oxford 
degree  with  so  great  a  change  in  his  opinions.  The 
question  was  tried,  and  he  was  perpetually  suspended 
unless  he  retracted.  He  then  resigned  his  positions 
in  the  Church  of  England  and  entered  the  Church  of 
Rome,  in  which  he  became  a  priest,  and  canon  of  the 
diocese  of  Westminster.  His  publications  are  numer- 
ous, and  some  of  them  have  considerable  value." 

"Annotations  to  the  Episcopal  Hymnal." 

It  was  also  translated  by  Edward  Caswall  (born 
1814)  under  the  title  of  "Come  hither,  ye  faithful." 


16  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

The  tune  is  known  by  Romanists  as  u  The  Mid- 
night Mass."  It  used  to  be  sung  in  the  processions 
of  priests  and  nuns  and  the  religious  orders  on  their 
way  from  their  houses  to  the  church  on  Christmas 
morning.  It  is  known  in  some  Protestant  churches 
as  the  Portuguese  Hymn,  so  called  because  the  tune 
was  brought  to  England  from  Portugal. 

The   hymn   has   been  attributed   to  Bonaventura 

(1221-1274). 

Adeste  fideles, 

Laeti  triumphantes, 

Venite,  venite  in  Bethlehem. 

Natum  videte  Regem  angelorum. 

Chorus. 
Venite  adoremus, 
Venite  adoremus ; 
Venite  adoremus  Dominum. 

Deum  de  Deo, 

Lumen  de  lumine, 

Gestant  puellae  viscera. 

Deum  verum  genitum  non  factum. — Cho. 

Cantet  nunc  Io 

Chorus  angelorum, 

Cantet  nunc  aula  ccelestium. 

Gloria,  gloria  in  excelsis  Deo. — Cho. 

Ergo  qui  natus, 

Die  hodierna, 

Jesu  tibi  sit  gloria. 

Patris  aeterni  verbum  caro  factum. — Cho. 

The  composer  of  the  tune,  Marcus  Portugal,  was 
a  chapel  master  to  the  king  of  Portugal,  and  died  at 
Rio  Janeiro  about  1834,  aged  71. 


•w         Ip 


ALMOST  PERSUADED.  17 

ALMOST  PERSUADED. 

P.    P.    BLISS,    1838-1876. 

"I  am  preparing  a  book  of  gospel  songs;  pray  for 
the  book;  all  the  good  that  is  in  it  must  come  from 
God."  So  wrote  P.  P.  Bliss  to  a  Christian  friend. 
The  book  was  published.  It  was  full  of  gospel  messa- 
ges to  the  people.  It  led  to  the  publishing  of  "Gospel 
Hymns,"  of  which  millions  of  copies  have  been  sold. 

Mr.  Bliss  was  born  near  Rome,  Penn.,  1838.  No- 
ting the  general  acceptance  of  the  tune  "Oh!  how  I 
love  Jesus,"  he  said,  "  I  have  sung  of  my  poor  love  to 
Christ;  now  I  will  sing  of  his  love  to  me."  There 
followed  "Jesus  loves  me."  One  of  his  most  beau- 
tiful tunes  is  "Eternity;"  one  of  the  most  service- 
able, "Almost  Persuaded." 

Rev.  Mr.  Brundage  tells  of  the  origin  of  "Almost 
Persuaded,"  in  a  sermon  preached  by  him  many 
years  ago.  The  closing  words  of  the  sermon  were: 
"He  who  is  almost  persuaded  is  almost  saved,  but  to 
be  almost  saved  is  to  be  entirely  lost."  Mr.  Bliss, 
being  in  the  audience,  was  impressed  with  the 
thought,  and  immediately  set  about  the  composition 
of  what  proved  one  of  his  most  popular  songs,  deriv- 
ing his  inspiration  from  the  sermon  of  his  friend,  Mr. 

Brundage.  "  Memoir  of  Bliss." 

Mr.  Bliss  perished  in  the  railroad  disaster  at  Ashta- 
bula, O.,  December  29,  1876,  after  a  visit  to  his  aged 
mother.  He  was  accustomed  to  compose  on  the  cars 
and  in  public  places,  wherever  the  impulse  met  him, 

The  Story  of  the  Tunes. 


1 8  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

and  was  believed  to  be  engaged  in  a  composition 
when  he  met  with  the  fatal  accident.  His  wife,  n£e 
Lucy  Young,  perished  with  him,  aged  35. 

The  Chicago  "Tribune"  thus  reports  the  scene  of 
the  accident  in  which  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bliss  perished: 

"It  was  the  wildest  winter  night  of  the  year. 
Three  hours  behind  its  time,  the  Pacific  Express, 
which  had  left  New  York  the  night  before,  struggled 
along  through  the  drifts  and  the  blinding  storm.  The 
eleven  cars  were  a  heavy  burden  to  the  two  engines, 
and  when  the  leading  locomotive  broke  through  the 
drifts  beyond  the  ravine  and  rolled  on  across  the 
bridge,  the  train  wTas  moving  at  less  than  ten  miles 
an  hour.  The  head-lamp  threw  but  a  short  and  dim 
flash  of  light  in  the  front,  so  thick  wras  the  air  with 
the  driving  snow.  The  train  crept  across  the  bridge; 
the  leading  engine  had  reached  solid  ground  beyond, 
and  its  driver  had  just  given  it  steam,  when  some- 
thing in  the  undergearing  of  the  bridge  snapped. 
For  an  instant  there  was  a  confused  crackling  of 
beams  and  girders,  ending  with  a  tremendous  crash, 
as  the  whole  train  but  the  leading  engine  broke 
through  the  framework  and  fell  in  a  heap  of  crushed 
and  splintered  ruins  at  the  bottom.  Notwithstanding 
the  wind  and  storm,  the  crash  was  heard  by  people 
within-doors  half  a  mile  away.  For  a  moment  there 
was  silence,  a  stunned  sensation  among  the  survivors, 
who  in  all  stages  of  mutilation  lay  piled  among  the 
dying  and  dead.  Then  arose  the  cries  of  the  maimed 
and  suffering;  the  few  who  remained  unhurt  hastened 


ALMOS  T  PERS  UADED.  1 9 

to  escape  from  the  shattered  cars.  They  crawled  out 
of  windows  into  freezing  water  waist-deep.  Men, 
women,  and  children,  with  limbs  bruised  and  broken, 
pinched  between  timbers  and  transfixed  by  jagged 
splinters,  begged  with  their  last  breath  for  aid  that 
no  human  power  could  give. 

14  Five  minutes  after  the  train  fell  the  fire  broke 
out  in  the  cars  piled  against  the  abutments  at  either 
end.  A  moment  later  flames  broke  from  the  smok- 
ing car  and  first  coach  piled  across  each  other  near 
the  middle  of  the  stream.  In  less  than  ten  minutes 
after  the  catastrophe  every  car  in  the  wreck  was  on 
fire,  and  the  flames,  fed  by  the  dry  varnished  work 
and  fanned  by  the  icy  gale,  licked  up  the  ruins  as 
though  they  had  been  tinder.  Destruction  was  so 
swift  that  mercy  was  bafTled.  Men,  who  in  the  be- 
wilderment of  the  shock  sprang  out  and  reached  the 
solid  ice,  went  back  after  wives  and  children,  and 
found  them  suffocating  and  roasting  in  the  flames. 
The  neighboring  residents,  startled  by  the  crash,  were 
lighted  to  the  scene  by  the  conflagration,  which  made 
even  their  prompt  assistance  too  late.  By  midnight 
the  cremation  was  complete.  The  storm  had  sub- 
sided, but  the  wind  still  blew  fiercely,  and  the  cold 
was  more  intense.  When  morning  came,  all  that 
remained  of  the  Pacific  Express  was  a  windrow  of  car- 
wheels,  axles,  brake -irons,  truck  -  frames,  and  twisted 
rails  lying  in  a  black  pool  at  the  bottom  of  the  gorge. 
The  wood  had  burned  completely  away,  and  the  ruins 
were  covered  with  white  ashes." 


20  THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Another  correspondent  thus  gives  the  circum- 
stances of  the  death  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bliss: 

"When  the  train  fell,  Mr.  Bliss  succeeded  in 
crawling  through  a  window,  supposing  he  could  pull 
his  wife  and  children  after  him.  But  they  were 
jammed  fast  and  every  effort  of  his  was  unavailing. 
The  car  was  all  jammed  up,  and  the  lady  and  her 
children  were  caught  in  the  ironwork  of  the  seats. 
Finding  that  he  could  not  save  them,  he  stayed  there 
with  them  and  died." 


AMERICA. 

HENRY  CAREY,    17— . 


The  words  of  this  tune,  "My  country,  'tis  of 
thee,1'  were  composed  by  Rev.  S.  F.  Smith,  the  au- 
thor of  "Yes,  my  native  land,  I  love  thee!"  and  other 
hymns.  They  were  written  for  Lowell  Mason,  to 
be  sung  at  a  national  festival  in  Boston,  in  Park 
Street  Church. 

The  music  is  an  old  English  tune,  composed  by 
John  Bull,  teacher  to  Queen  Elizabeth,  and  improved 
by  Henry  Carey.  A  like  tune  of  French  origin  is  as- 
sociated with  Louis  XIV.  and  with  the  vintages  of  old 
France. 

Moore,  in  his  "Cyclopaedia  of  Music,"  gives  the 
following  story  of  the  origin  of  this  tune,  which  is 
the  accepted  version.  Moore  also  gives  credit  to  the 
French  tune  as  a  possible  suggestion  of  the  English. 

"  It  has  been  generally  believed  that  Henry  Carey 


AMERICA.  21 

was  the  author,  and  that  he  employed  Dr.  Thornton, 
of  Bath,  and  Christopher  Smith,  Handel's  clerk,  to 
correct  the  words  as  well  as  music.  This  gave  rise 
to  the  assertion  that  Handel  was  the  composer.  The 
words,  with  the  air,  appeared  in  the  'Gentleman's 
Magazine'  in  1745,  when  the  landing  of  the  young 
Stuart  called  forth  expressions  of  loyalty  from  the  ad- 
herents of  the  reigning  family.  After  Dr.  Arne,  the 
composer  of  another  English  song,  'Rule,  Britannia,' 
had  brought  it  on  the  stage,  it  soon  became  very 
popular.  Since  that  time  the  harmony  of  the  song 
has  been  much  improved,  but  the  rhythm  is  the  same 
as  ori<rinallv.  According  to  a  notice  in  the  '  New 
Monthly  [Magazine,'  Vol.  IV.,  page  389,  there  is  a 
copy  of  this  national  song,  published  without  date,  by 
Riley  and  Williams,  in  which  Anthony  Young,  organ- 
ist in  London,  is  called  author  of  the  air.  There  is 
also  a  story  that  this  national  song  was  not  made  for 
King  George,  but  that  in  older  versions  it  ran  thus: 
lGod  save  great  James,  our  king,'  and  that  it  was 
originally  written  and  set  to  music  for  the  Catholic 
chapel  of  James  II.,  and  no  one  durst  own  or  sing  it 
after  the  abdication  of  James,  fearing  to  incur  the 
penalty  of  treason,  so  that  the  song  lay  dormant  sixty 
years  before  it  was  revived  for  George  II.  It  is  very 
interesting  to  observe  how  this  song,  of  which  the 
words  have  no  great  merit,  has  become  dear  to  the 
whole  English  nation,  on  account  of  the  associations 
connected  with  it." 


22  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

AMERICAN  HYMN. 

MATTHIAS   KELLER,  1813— . 

Matthias  Keller  was  born  at  Ulm,  Wiirtem- 
berg,  Germany,  in  1813.  He  became  a  musician  and 
band-master,  and  came  to  this  country  in  1846.  The 
war  for  the  Union  inspired  him  with  a  desire  to  write 
a  national  song,  and  he  produced  the  "American 
Hymn,"  usually  sung  to  the  words,  "Angel  of 
peace."  He  is  said  to  have  offered  it  to  music  pub- 
lishers without  receiving  encouragement,  and  the 
composition  was  long  in  gaining  recognition.  Hav- 
ing failed  to  secure  interpreters  for  it  in  New  York, 
he  offered  it  to  a  band  in  Boston,  where  it  met  with 
appreciation.  It  was  played  on  the  Common  for 
many  years  on  Independence  Days.  At  the  great 
"Peace  Jubilee"  in  1872  it  was  sung  by  a  chorus  of 
some  ten  thousand  voices,  to  an  orchestra  of  a  thou- 
sand or  more  instruments.  It  was  a  favorite  with 
Gilmore's  band,  and  from  these  sources  became  na- 
tional. 

We  give  below  a  hymn  often  sung  to  it: 

"  Father  Almighty,  we  bow  at  thy  feet; 

Humbly  thy  grace  and  thy  goodness  we  own. 
Answer  in  love  when  thy  children  entreat, 

Hear  our  thanksgiving  ascend  to  thy  throne. 
Seeking  thy  blessing,  in  worship  we  meet, 

Trusting  our  souls  on  thy  mercy  alone  ; 
Father  Almighty,  we  bow  at  thy  feet. 

"  Breathe,  Holy  Spirit,  thy  comfort  divine, 
Tune  every  voice  to  thy  music  of  peace; 
Hushed  in  our  hearts,  with  one  whisper  of  thine, 
Pride  and  the  tumult  of  passion  will  cease. 


AMSTERDAM.  23 

Joy  of  the  watchful,  who  wait  for  thy  sign, 
Hope  of  the  sinful,  who  long  for  release, 
Breathe,  Holy  Spirit,  thy  comfort  divine. 

'  God  of  salvation,  thy  glory  we  sing, 

Honors  to  thee  in  thy  temple  belong; 
Welcome  the  tribute  of  gladness  we  bring, 

Loud-pealing  organ  and  chorus  of  song. 
While  our  high  praises,  Redeemer  and  King, 

Blend  with  the  notes  of  the  angelic  throng, 
God  of  salvation,  thy  glory  we  sing." 

REV.    THKRON   BROWN. 


AMSTERDAM. 

JAMES   NARES,  1715-1783. 

To  this  tune  is  usually  sung  the  hymn  by  Rev.  R. 
Seagrave,  "Rise,  my  soul,  and  stretch  thy  wings." 

"TheGreat  Musicians,"  edited  by  Francis  Hueffer, 
contains  the  following  account  of  James  Nares,  the 
author  of  the  tune: 

"He  was  born  at  Hanwell,  Middlesex,  in  1715, 
was  admitted  chorister  at  the  Chapel  Royal,  under 
Bernard  Gates,  and  when  he  was  able  to  play  the 
organ  was  appointed  deputy  for  Pigott,  of  St.  George's 
Chapel,  Windsor,  and  became  organist  at  York  Min- 
ster in  1734.  He  succeeded  Greene  as  organist  and 
composer  to  the  Chapel  Royal  in  1756,  and  'in  the 
same  year  was  made  Doctor  of  Music  at  Cambridge. 
He  was  appointed  master  of  the  children  of  the  Chapel 
Royal  in  1757,  on  the  death  of  Gates.  This  post  he 
resigned  in  1780,  and  he  died  in  1783  (February  10), 
and  was  buried  in  St.  Margaret's  Church,  Westminster. 
He  had  the  reputation  of  being  an  excellent  trainer  of 


24  THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

boys'  voices,  many  of  his  anthems  having  been  writ- 
ten to  exhibit  the  accomplishments  of  his  young  pu- 
pils. The  degree  of  excellence  the  boys  attained  was 
not  won  in  those  days  without  the  infliction  of  much 
corporal  punishment." 


ANTIOCH. 

ARRANGED   FROM   HANDEL,   BY    DR.    LOWELL  MASON,  1792-1872. 

Dr.  Lowell  Mason  may  be  regarded  as  the  Jubal 
of  American  hymn-tune  writing.  His  "Missionary 
Hymn,"  "Boylstoii,"  and  "Hebron"  were  among 
the  first  of  these  compositions,  and  have  become  per- 
petual tones  in  the  church,  as  also  "  Antioch,"  "La- 
ban,"  and  "Watchman,  tell  us  of  the  night." 

His  early  life  was  practical  and  simple.  He  loved 
music  and  instructed  himself.  He  went  to  Savannah 
as  a  clerk;  he  there  edited  a  book  of  church  music, 
which  was  published  by  the  Handel  and  Haydn  So- 
ciety, Boston,  1822,  and  led  to  his  going  to  Boston 
and  making  that  city  his  home.  He  became  the 
President  of  the  Handel  and  Haydn  Society,  and  es- 
tablished the  Boston  Academy  of  Music. 

A  disciple  of  Pestalozzi  and  a  friend  of  such  men 
as  Horace  Mann,  he  began,  about  1850,  the  system 
of  musical  conventions  which  is  now  common  in 
America  and  England. 

He  studied  abroad,  and  was  made  a  Doctor  of 
Music,  1853,  and  he  died  at  Orange,  N.  J.,  1872. 


AULD  LANG  SYNE.  25 

ARLINGTON* 

DR.    AKNE,   I7IO-: 

Dr.  Thomas  Augustine  Arne  was  born  in  1710. 
He  was  sent  to  Eton  to  prepare  for  the  practice  of 
law,  but  was  early  seized  with  the  desire  to  become  a 
musician.  He  would  assume  the  guise  of  a  servant 
in  order  to  hear  good  music  at  a  low  cost.  He  learned 
music  on  a  muffled  spinet,  and  practised  at  night. 
His  family  and  friends  tried  in  vain  to  repress  these 
musical  aspirations.  He  followed  the  methods  of 
Handel,  inspired  by  a  pure  love  of  art.  He  died  in 
1778,  having  composed  more  than  one  hundred  and 
fifty  musical  pieces.     He  was  a  Roman-catholic. 


ARNHEIM. 

SAMUEL   HOLYOKE,  1762-1816. 

Composed  in  1785  by  Samuel  Holyoke,  when  he 
was  but  fourteen  years  old.  It  was  the  last  tune  sung 
to  him  before  his  death.  This  is  one  of  the  few  tunes 
of  early  New  England  psalmody  that  have  survived. 


AULD  LAXG  SYNE. 

ARRANGED   BY  GEORGE  THOMSON,    I757-1S5I. 

To  this  Scottish  air  are  sung  several  sacred  hymns, 
notably,  u  When  I  can  read  my  title  clear,"  especially 
in  country  congregations. 

In  a  letter  dated  December  17,  1788,  Burns  says, 
u  There   is   an   old   song   and   tunc  which   has   often 


26  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

thrilled  through  my  soul;  I  shall  give  you  the  verses 
in  another  sheet.  Light  be  the  turf  on  the  breast  of 
the  poet  who  composed  the  glorious  fragment." 

This  old  song  and  tune  inspired  Burns  to  compose 
uAuld  Lang  Syne."  Only  the  second  and  third 
stanzas  were  composed  by  Burns;  the  others  were 
retouched  and  adopted  from  the  older  song.  The 
words  "Auld  Lang  Syne"  had  long  been  refrain 
words  in  Scotland. 

In  a  letter  to  George  Thomson,  a  musician,  dated 
September,  1793,  Burns  says,  "  One  song  more:  'Auld 
Lang  Syne;'  the  air  is  but  mediocre,  but  the  follow- 
ing song,  the  song  of  the  olden  times,  and  which  has 
never  been  in  print,  nor  even  in  manuscript  until  I 
took  it  down  from  an  old  man's  singing,  is  enough  to 
recommend  any  air." 

Mr.  Thomson  set  the  words  to  an  old  minstrel 
melody,  "I  feed  a  lad  at  Michaelmas,"  and  out  of 
this  combination  came  the  song  which  has  long  been 
put  to  the  uses  of  gospel  singing.     The  tune  dates 

1750  or  earlier. 

♦ 

AVISON.     "SOUND  THE  LOUD  TIMBREL." 

CHARLES  AVISON,    I71O-1783. 

The  tune  owes  its  popularity  to  the  words  of 
Moore.     It  is  the  same  tune  as 

"  Sound  the  loud  timbrel  o'er  Egypt's  dark  sea." 
The  hymn, 

"  Zion,  the  marvellous  story  be  telling," 


BATTLE  HYMN  OF  THE  REPUBLIC.       27 

or, 

11  Shout  the  glad  tidings,  exultingly  sing," 

well    fills   the   spirit  and   expression  of  this  jubilant 

melody. 

♦ 

BALERMA. 

ROBERT  SIMPSON,  OF  SCOTLAND,  I790-1832.      ARRANGED   BY   DR.    LOWELL   MASON. 


BATTLE  HYMN  OF  THE  REPUBLIC. 

FRANK   E.   JEROME,    RUSSELL,   KANSAS,    l86l. 

An  old  Methodist  camp-meeting  tune,  adapted  to 
the  use  of  the  army  by  Charles  Hall,  Charlestown, 
Mass.  When  it  was  first  published,  Capt.  James 
Greenleaf,  an  organist,  arranged  the  music,  and  it 
was  first  publicly  sung  by  a  Massachusetts  regiment, 
at  Fort  Warren,  Boston  Harbor,  in  1861. 

Mrs.  Howe,  some  years  ago,  in  answer  to  a  note 
from  the  "  Youth's  Companion,"  wrote  for  that  paper 
the  following  story  of  this  national  hymn: 

"In  the  late  autumn  of  the  first  year  of  the  war 
for  the  Union  a  strong  feeling  of  interest  and  wonder 
drew  me  to  the  city  of  Washington.  Arriving  within 
the  city,  we  found  abundant  evidence  of  its  military 
occupation.  A  number  of  troops  were  quartered 
within  it,  and  small  bodies  of  armed  men  marched 
frequently  through  the  streets.  Officers  and  orderlies 
galloped  past  the  windows  of  our  hotel.  Ambulances 
came  and  went.  Buildings  here  and  there  were  desig- 
nated as  military  headquarters.     Onite  near  our  hotel 


28       THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

was  a  ghastly  reminder  of  what  was  going  on,  in  the 
shape  of  an  establishment  for  embalming  the  bodies 
of  the  dead,  so  that  they  might  be  removed  to  the 
places  designated  by  their  friends  for  burial, 

"The  minds  of  all  were  intent  upon  the  war,  and 
no  news  were  asked  for  other  than  intelligence  of  the 
various  skirmishes  and  encounters  which  were  con- 
stantly taking  place.  It  was  therefore  with  eager 
interest  that  we  made  our  first  visit  to  the  encamp- 
ment of  the  great  Army  of  the  Potomac,  which  at 
that  time  occupied  a  great  stretch  of  country  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  city. 

1 '  Our  first  visit  was  to  the  colonel  of  a  Massachu- 
setts regiment  stationed  at  Fort  Albany.  I  remember 
well  the  interest  with  which  we  inquired  into  every 
detail  of  camp-life ;  the  officers'  tents,  warmed  by 
small  stoves  of  sheet  iron;  the  doctor's  tent,  provided 
with  a  huge  medicine-chest;  the  hospital  tent,  with 
its  rows  of  pale,  gaunt  faces. 

"Our  friend,  Col.  G ,  welcomed  us  cordially  to 

his  headquarters,  which  were  in  an  ordinary  wooden 
building,  with  a  piazza  running  along  the  front.  He 
invited  us  to  warm  ourselves  by  a  comfortable  wood 
fire,  and  presently  called  together  a  number  of  his 
men  to  greet  the  visitors  from  Massachusetts,  among 
whom  was  the  wife  of  its  greatly  honored  governor, 
John  A.  Andrew.  From  this  camp  we  drove  to  an- 
other and  another,  and  the  sunlight  had  quite  failed 
us  before  we  crossed  the  long  bridge  again  and  re- 
turned to  our  hotel. 


BATTLE  HYMN  OF  THE  REPUBLIC.      29 

"A  little  after  this  we  drove  out  again  to  attend  a 
review  of  ten  thousand  of  the  national  troops.  While 
this  was  in  progress  a  sudden  alarm  intervened.  A 
small  body  of  men  had  been  attacked  and  surrounded 
by  the  enemy.  We  saw  the  reinforcements  gallop  to 
their  assistance,  and  presently  learned  that  the  review 
would  be  discontinued. 

"On  our  way  back  to  Washington,  to  beguile  the 
time  we  began  to  sing  the  John  Brown  song,  which 
was  at  that  time  very  popular  among  the  soldiers. 
As  we  sang  it  they  answered  back,  'Good  for  you!' 
I  remarked  to  a  friend  that  I  had  always  wished  to 
write  some  verses  which  might  be  sung  to  that 
tune. 

"That  night  I  went  to  bed  as  usual,  and  slept 
soundly  after  the  fatigue  of  our  long,  cold  drive.  It 
must  have  been  at  the  earliest  touch  of  dawn  that  I 
awoke,  and  began  in  my  mind  to  twine  the  long  lines 
of  a  hymn  which  promised  to  suit  the  measure  of  the 
John  Brown  melody.  Each  verse  in  succession 
seemed  to  write  itself  clearly  in  my  thoughts,  and  I 
presently  said  to  myself,  c  I  must  get  up  and  write 
this  down.'  Accordingly  I  sprang  out  of  bed  and 
fumbled  about  in  the  dark  room  for  a  stump  of  a  quill 
pen  and  a  bit  of  paper,  which  I  remembered  to  have 
seen  upon  my  table  before  retiring  to  rest;  and  al- 
though what  I  wrote  was  very  crookedly  written,  I 
knew  by  past  experience  that  I  should  be  able  to 
make  it  out  within  twenty-four  hours  of  the  time  in 
which  it  was  written. 


3o  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"The  poem  was  published  in  the  'Atlantic 
Monthly'  magazine.  Mr.  James  T.  Fields,  at  that 
time  the  editor  of  the  magazine,  suggested  the  name 
by  which  the  verses  have  become  known.  Its  appear- 
ance at  first  excited  little  comment,  and  I  had  ceased 
to  think  of  it  as  likely  to  be  especially  noticed,  when 
I  read  in  some  newspaper  that  a  number  of  Union 
men  shut  up  in  a  Southern  prison  had  found  some 
comfort  in  singing  this  new  hymn,  whose  author  was 
unknown  to  them  even  by  name.  This  name  was 
now  inquired  for  and  made  known. 

"In  the  twenty  years  that  have  passed  since  that 
time  I  have  often  had  the  pleasure  of  knowing  that 
my  battle  hymn  has  been  sung  by  the  lovers  of  God 
and  men.  I  learned  years  ago  that  at  a  great  meet- 
ing of  the  colored  schools  of  Richmond,  Va.,  it  was 
sung  by  a  large  chorus  of  children,  teachers,  and 
parents.  In  our  far  West  I  have  been  greeted  by  its 
music  as  I  have  walked  to  take  my  place  on  the  plat- 
form. I  have  heard  it  in  the  far  Bast  also.  When 
on  a  visit  to  Constantinople  two  years  ago,  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  passing  some  hours  at  Robert  College, 
an  American  institution,  beautifully  situated  on  the 
banks  of  the  Bosphorus.  As  I  was  about  to  take 
leave,  the  professors  and  ladies  who  had  kindly  en- 
tertained me  asked  me  to  listen  to  what  I  should 
hear  while  descending  the  steep  hill  upon  whose 
summit  the  college  stands.  I  had  been  carried  up 
this  ascent  in  a  chair  by  two  stout  porters.  As  I 
walked  down,  helped  only  by  one  strong  arm,  I  heard 


BENEVENTO.  31 

the  voices  of  my  late  entertainers  united  in  singing, 
'  Mine  eyes  have  seen  the  glory  of  the  coming  of  the  Lord.' 
And  I  thought  that  we  might  see  this  glory  oftener  if 
we  would  look  for  it,  and  most  of  all  when  faithful 
souls  are  working  together  for  the  good  of  humanity." 

Mine  eyes  have  seen  the  glory  of  the  coming  of  the  Lord ; 

He  is  trampling  out  the   vintage  where  the  grapes  of  wrath  are 

stored ; 
He  has  loosed  the  fateful  lightning  of  his  terrible  swift  sword  ; 
His  truth  is  marching  on. 

I  have  seen  him  in  the  watch-fires  of  a  hundred  circling  camps ; 
They  have  builded  him  an  altar  in  the  evening  dews  and  damps; 
I  have  read  his  righteous  sentence  by  the  dim  and  flaring  lamps ; 
His  day  is  marching  on. 

I  have  read  a  fiery  gospel  writ  in  burnished  rows  of  steel — 

"As  ye  deal  with  my  contemners,  so  with   you  my  grace  shall 

deal ;  " 
Let  the  hero  born  of  woman  crush  the  serpent  with  his  heel, 
Since  God  is  marching  on. 

He  has  sounded  forth  the  trumpet  that  shall  never  call  retreat; 
He  is  sifting  out  the  hearts  of  men  before  his  judgment-seat; 
Oh!  be  swift,  my  soul,  to  answer  him ;  be  jubilant,  my  feet; 
Our  God  is  marching  on. 

In  the  beauty  of  the  lilies  Christ  was  born  across  the  sea, 
With  a  glory  in  his  bosom  that  transfigures  you  and  me; 
As  he  died  to  make  men  holy,  let  us  die  to  make  men  free, 
While  God  is  marching  on. 


BEXEVEXTO. 

SAMUEL    WEBBE,    I74O— lSl6. 

This  tune  is  usually  sung  to  the  words  of  Rev. 
John  Newton, 

"While  with  ceaseless  course  the  sun." 


32  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Samuel  Webbe,  the  author  of  the  tune,  was  a  pop- 
ular English  composer  of  songs,  and  was  born  in  1740. 
Losing  both  his  parents  in  his  youth,  he  had  recourse 
to  copying  music  for  a  support ;  and  this  led  him 
to  become  a  composer.  He  produced  more  than  one 
hundred  popular  compositions. 


BETHANY. 

DR.  LOWELL  MASON.       SEE  ANTIOCH,  BOYLSTON,  AND  MT.  VERNON. 


BEYOND  THE  SMILING  AND  THE  WEEPING. 

G.  O  STEBBINS.      1846. 

Mr.  Stebbins  is  an  American  singing  evangelist, 
greatly  respected  and  beloved,  and  a  contributor  to  the 
musical  works  of  Messrs.  Moody  and  Sankey. 


BOYLSTON. 

DR.  LOWELL  MASON.*    1792-1872. 

Of  the  moral  worth  of  Dr.  Mason  and  his  fitness  as 

a  teacher  and  composer,  his  pastor  thus  spoke  in  a 

memorial  sermon:      "His   pupils,  who  are  scattered 

east  and  west  and  north  and  south  across  the  continent, 

are  quick  to  testify  their  personal  indebtedness  to  him, 

not  only,  and  not  even  chiefly,  for  the  musical  skill 

and  knowledge  which  he  gave  them,  but  for  the  moral 

tone  which   his   strong   character   imparted    to   their 

lives." 

*  See  Antioch. 


CHESTER.  33 

One  of  his  old  Boston  pupils  thus  writes  of  him: 
"  Schoolboys  of  forty  years  ago  will  remember,  as  does 
the  writer  of  this  article,  how  Dr.  Mason's  splendid 
face,  lighted  with  the  smile  it  always  wore,  beamed 
like  sunshine  upon  the  class;  and  his  cheery,  '  Now 
we  will  sing  this  little  exercise!'  made  it  an  impossi- 
bility not  to  do  what  he  wanted.  How  well  all  the 
boys  loved  him!" 

It  was  Dr.  Mason's  habit  to  select  his  themes  from 
Handel,  Haydn,  Mozart,  and  the  great  composers,  and 
give  them  a  metrical  clothing.  Several  tunes  that 
bear  his  name  were  only  rearranged  by  him  from  the 
great  musical  compositions,  but  on  being  transferred  to 
other  works  are  credited  to  him  as  the  editor  of  the 
music-book  from  which  they  were  taken. 


BOWER  OF  PRAYER. 

WRITTEN   1815,  BY  ELDER  JOHN  OSBORNE,  OF  N.  H.,  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN   DENOMINA- 
TION. 

"  To  leave  my  dear  friends  and  with  neighbors  to  part." 


CHESTER. 


WORDS   AND   MUSIC  WRITTEN   AS  A   PATRIOTIC  ODE   IN    1770,  BY   WILLIAM   BILLINGS. 
1746-lSoO.      SEE  MAJESTY. 

11  A  flippant  critic,  of  the  new  school  of  musi- 
cians and  with  all  the  prejudices  of  his  class,  thus 
summarizes  him:  4  William  Billings,  of  Boston,  a  nat- 

The  Story  of  the  1  2* 


34       THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

ural  genius  with  no  education. '  He  is  correct  in  both 
propositions,  but  it  opens  up  a  field  of  speculation 
without  limit.  If  with  'no  education'  William  Bil- 
lings achieved  so  much,  what  would  he  not  have  done 
had  he  been  educated  ?  The  probabilities  are  such  as 
to  dwarf  into  utter  insignificance  the  attainments  of 
the  so-called  'educated  '  ones  of  the  present  day. 

"Another  writer  says  of  him,  c  His  works  survive 
their  critics,  and  are  sung  in  grateful  recollection  by 
thousands  over  all  the  land,  while  forgetfulness  covers 
his  detractor.  .  .  .  Billings  was  the  man  with  the 
genius  and  zeal  to  write  words  and  music  that  moved 
the  hearts  and  nerved  the  arms  to  strike  for  freedom  in 
these  early  days.  "Chester,"  among  others,  was  a 
favorite  rallying  song  at  home  and  in  the  camp  during 
the  Revolutionary  struggle.  From  what  we  know  of 
Billings,  and  of  the  circumstances  of  the  time  when  he 
appeared,  it  is  not  difficult  to  perceive  the  value  of  his 
efforts  in  meeting  the  wants  of  the  age.' 

"  Lowell  Mason,  who  has  done  more  for  the  devel- 
opment of  music  among  the  masses  than  any  other 
man,  said  to  the  writer,  who  was  his  pupil  in  one  of 
the  Boston  public  schools  many  years  ago,  '  So  he 
was  your  grandfather,  was  he  ?  Well,  my  lad,  if  you 
have  one  tenth  part  of  his  genius  and  perseverance, 
you  are  sure  to  go  ahead.  He  was  a  genius,  a  rough 
diamond,  who  would  have  made  himself  felt  in  any 
age  or  place  in  which  he  lived.'  "  f.n.  Scott. 

"  Billings  possessed  something  of  the  spirit  of  po- 
etry, as  well  as  of  music,  and  was  the  author  of  many 


CHINA.  35 

of  the  words,  as  well  as  the  tunes,  he  published.  The 
following  words  set  to  '  Chester'  are  his  own: 

"  '  Let  tyrants  shake  their  iron  rod, 

And  slavery  clank  her  galling  chains  ; 
We  '11  fear  them  not ;  we  trust  in  God — 
New  England's  God  for  ever  reigns.' 

He  was  a  zealous  patriot,  too,  and  much  attached  to 
Gov.  Samuel  Adams  of  Massachusetts,  who  was  also  a 
great  lover  and  performer  of  psalmody;  and  it  is  with- 
in the  recollection  of  many  now  living  that  that 
memorable  statesman  uniformly  was  seated  at  church 
in  the  singing  choir.  One  secret,  no  doubt,  of  the  vast 
popularity  Billings'  works  obtained  was  the  patriotic 
ardor  they  breathed.  The  words  above  quoted  are  an 
example,  and  'Chester,'  it  is  said,  was  frequently 
heard  from  every  fife  in  the  New  England  ranks.  The 
spirit  of  the  Revolution  was  also  manifest  in  his 
'Lamentation  over  Boston,'  his  'Retrospect,'  his  'In- 
dependence,' his  'Columbia,'  as  well  as  his  'Chester,' 

and  many  Other  pieces. ' '  Moore's  "  Cyclopaedia  of  Music." 


CHINA. 

TIMOTHY   SWAN,    1758-1842. 

This  was  once  one  of  the  most  popular  tunes  in 
New  England,  and  was  sung  to  the  words, 

"Why  do  we  mourn  departing  friends, 
And  shake  at  death's  alarms  ? 
Tis  but  the  voice  that  Jesus  sends 
To  call  us  to  his  arms." 


36       THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

It  was  composed  by  Timothy  Swan,  and  published  in 
1785  in  "  Federal  Harmony,"  when  the  composer  was 
about  twenty-eight  years  of  age. 


"  COME  UNTO  HIM." 

GEORGE  FREDERICK   HANDEL,  1684-1759. 

11 1  did  think  I  saw  all  heaven  before  me  and  the 
great  God  himself;"  so  said  Handel  of  his  spiritual 
experience  during  the  composition  of  the  Hallelujah 
Chorus  of  the  "  Messiah." 

This  chorus  is  an  immortal  tone,  the  nearest  ap- 
proach to  the  celestial  world,  perhaps,  to  which  mu- 
sic can  lead  us.  It  is  as  the  ninetieth  Psalm  among 
Psalms.  We  may  doubt  that  in  coming  time  it  will 
be  equalled.  When  George  II.  first  heard  it  he  leaped 
to  his  feet;  and  following  the  example  of  the  king,  the 
audience  rose.  The  custom  of  rising  during  the  first 
word  of  the  chorus  has  become  general.  The  listener 
seems  to  stand  in  the  very  presence  of  the  Majesty  on 
high.     Handel  wrote  for  God. 

"  You  have  given  the  audience  an  excellent  enter- 
tainment," said  a  nobleman  to  Handel  after  a  per- 
formance of  the  "  Messiah." 

u  My  lord,"  said  the  great  composer,  "I  should  be 
sorry  if  I  had  only  entertained  them;  I  wish  to  make 
them  better." 

Handel  was  born  at  Halle,  on  the  Saale,  in  Lower 
Saxony,  in   1684.   His  soul  seemed  full  of  music   in 


"COME  UNTO  HI  Mr  37 

childhood,  and  in  his  early  years  he  taught  himself  to 
play  on  a  dumb  spinet  in  the  garret. 

11  Music,"  said  Dr.  Handel,  his  father,  on  seeing 
the  trend  of  the  boy's  mind,  "is  an  amusement;  as 
an  occupation  it  has  little  dignity;  its  object  is  merely 
entertainment."  He  opposed  the  musical  develop- 
ment of  his  son. 

One  day  young  Handel  played  in  the  chapel  of  the 
ducal  palace.  The  duke  heard  him  with  admiration, 
and  said  to  his  father, 

"The  boy  has  genius;  you  do  wrong  to  repress  it; 
let  him  become  a  musician." 

Accordingly  he  was  placed  under  musical  instruc- 
tion. Music  absorbed  him;  he  aspired  to  know  the 
whole  of  it  and  of  every  musical  instrument.  He 
went  to  Florence,  to  Venice,  and  became  familiar  with 
the  tone-pictures  of  beautiful  Italy.  In  1709  he  be- 
came connected  with  the  court  of  King  George  of 
Brunswick.  He  was  invited  to  England,  where  his 
coming  was  a  triumph.  England  loved  Handel,  and 
Handel  England.  His  works  were  everywhere  sung 
and  played.  Arias,  concertos,  oratorios,  music  of 
every  kind,  flowed  from  his  pen  in  a  continuous 
stream.  Yet  nearly  all  that  he  wrote  before  the  age 
of  fifty  is  now  neglected  or  forgotten.  At  the  age.  of 
fifty-four  he  produced  "Saul,"  the  Dead  March  in 
which  is  still  played  on  grand  and  solemn  occasions. 
It  was  followed  by  "Israel  in  Egypt,"  with  its  stu- 
pendous choruses.  The  "Messiah"  was  written  for  a 
charity.     Handel  sympathized  with  the  Irish  people, 


38  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

who  asked  him  to  give  a  concert  in  Dublin  to  aid  the 
release  of  prisoners  for  debt.  To  thus  open  the  prison 
doors  he  composed  the  oratorio.  Its  triumphs  brought 
him  but  little  money,  but  it  gave  him  influence.  It 
enabled  him  to  sing  the  gospel,  which  was  a  supreme 
desire.  It  was  a  gospel  of  music  gloriously  presenting 
the  mission  of  Christ  to  the  world. 

Handel  became  old  and  blind;  it  is  a  tradition  that 
he  selected  the  organ  for  King's  Chapel,  Boston,  after 
blindness  had  come  upon  him. 

"I  desire  to  die  on  Good  Friday,"  he  said,  "  for 
that  was  the  day  that  the  Lord  entered  paradise." 

On  his  monument  in  Westminster  Abbey  is  the 
following  inscription: 

"  Died  on  Good  Friday,  April  14,  1759." 
"Come  unto  Him"  is  from  the  "Messiah." 


CORONA  TION. 

OLIVER   HOLDEN,  1765-1844. 

This  hymn  and  tune  may  be  regarded  almost  as 
the  Te  Deum  of  simple  Protestant  worship.  A  sketch 
of  the  author  of  the  words,  with  an  account  of  his 
triumphant  death,  has  been  given  in  "The  Story  of 
the  Hymns."  I  recently  saw  at  Mrs.  Tyler's,  in  Bos- 
ton, the  little  melodeon  on  which  the  tune  was  com- 
posed, and  I  could  not  but  regard  the  instrument  and 
its  associations  with  devout  interest.  The  place  where 
we  have  done  good  is  always  pleasant  to  us,  as  are  all 


CREA  TION.  39 

the  places  where  good  has  been  done,  all  the  birth- 
places of  good  influence.  Mrs.  Tyler,  who  was  a 
granddaughter  of  Mr.  Holden,  was  with  the  composer 
in  his  last  hours,  and  she  gave  me  an  account  of  his 
death.  The  last  utterances  of  this  eminently  good 
man  resembled  Perronet's. 

4 'Music  is  coining  to  me,"  he  said,  "and  such 
beautiful  themes;  but  I  can  write  no  more." 

Oliver  Holden,  the  author  of  the  tune  "Corona- 
tion," was  born  in  Charlestown,  Mass.,  1765.  His 
music  books  were  most  useful  in  their  day.  Among 
many  popular  hymn-tunes  that  he  wrote  are  "  Cow- 
per,"  "Confidence,"  and  "Concord." 

The  hymn  to  "Coronation"  was  at  first  rejected 
by  the  compilers  of  the  Methodist  hymn-book;  so  also 
was  "I  would  not  live  alway "  by  the  Episcopal 
compilers.  "Waiting  and  Watching"  was  inserted 
in  Gospel  Hymns  only  after  much  hesitancy.  All 
were  hymns  with  a  mission. 


CREA  TION. 

"The  heavens  are  telling"  is  one  of  the  greatest 
choruses  in  the  history  of  music,  and  is  from  the 
oratorio  of  the  "Creation."  Haydn  seems  to  have 
been  sincerely  pious,  and  whenever  he  felt  the  need  of 
anything  he  resorted  to  prayer. 

His  spiritual  experience  during  the  writing  of  the 
"Creation"  was  like  Handel's  when  composing  the 
41  Messiah."     The  work  was  the  ripe  fruit  of  his  life, 


4o       THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

and  was  composed  in  1799,  when  he  was  sixty-seven 
years  of  age. 

"I  was  never  so  pious,"  he  said,  "  as  when  com- 
posing the  'Creation.'  I  knelt  down  every  day  and 
prayed  God  to  strengthen  me  for  my  work." 

"I  know,"  he  said,  "that  God  has  bestowed  a 
talent  upon  me,  and  I  thank  him  for  it.  I  think  I 
have  done  my  duty,  and  been  of  use  in  my  generation 
by  my  works.     Let  others  do  the  same." 

"Not  mine,  not  mine;  it  all  came  to  me  from 
above!"  he  exclaimed,  when,  for  the  last  time,  he 
heard  the  great  chorus,  "Let  there  be  light!" 


"DARE  TO  BE  A  DANIEL." 

P.    P.    BLISS,  1838-1876. 

A  TUNE  of  little  merit  in  itself,  but,  with  its  hymn, 
very  useful  for  special  occasions  in  gospel  work.  It 
was  suggested  to  Mr.  Bliss  while  attending  a  service 
at  the  State  prison  in  Joliet,  111.,  where  he  had  gone 
to  sing.  H.  G.  SpafTord,  of  Chicago,  had  spoken  to  the 
prisoners  on  Daniel  in  Babylon.  "Are  your  windows 
open  towards  Jerusalem?"  he  asked  in  closing  his  ad- 
dress. Hence  the  suggestion  that  gave  rise  to  the 
tune. 


EIN'  FESTE  BURG. 
"  A  mighty  fortress  is  our  God." 

This  is  Luther's  version  of  the  Forty-sixth  Psalm, 
written  about  1529,  when  the  evangelical  princes  de- 


E/JV  FESTE  BURG.  41 

livered  that  protest  at  the  Diet  of  Spires  from  which 
Protestants  take  their  name.  Luther  used  often  to 
sing  it  in  1530,  while  the  Diet  of  Augsburg  was  sit- 
ting. It  soon  became  a  favorite  psalm  with  the  peo- 
ple. It  was  one  of  the  watchwords  of  the  Reforma- 
tion, cheering  armies  to  conflict  and  sustaining  be- 
lievers in  the  hour  of  fiery  trial.  The  first  line  of  this 
psalm  is  inscribed  on  Luther's  tomb  at  Wittenberg. 
It  has  been  called  the  "Marseillaise  hymn  of  Protes- 
tant Germany."  MILLER. 
One  version  commences  thus: 

Our  God  stands  firm,  a  rock  and  tower, 

A  shield  when  danger  presses, 
A  ready  help  in  every  hour 

When  doubt  or  pain  distresses. 

According  to  the  popular  tradition,  it  was  com- 
posed in  Coburg  Castle,  where  Luther  was  protected 
during  the  meeting  of  the  Diet  at  Augsburg.  Here, 
in  anxiety,  he  used  to  look  up  to  heaven  and  sing 
this  hymn. 

It  was  the  hymn  of  Gustavus  Adolphus  before  the 
battle  of  Leipzig  (1631),  and  before  that  at  Liitzen 
(1632),  where  he  lost  his  life. 

The  "Quiver"  (London)  publishes  an  account  of 
the  music  of  this  great  choral,  which  is  doubtless  cor- 
rect, as  follows: 

"The  history  of  '  Ein'  feste  Burg,'  like  that  of 
most  of  our  old  clioralcs,  is  invested  with  some  degree 
of  uncertainty.  Dr.  Burney  and  other  historians 
plainly  assert  that  Luther  wrote  the  hymn,  set  it  to 


42  THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

music,  and  sang  it  as  he  entered  Worms  in  1521.  Ac- 
cording to  the  testimony  of  several  of  the  reformer's 
contemporaries,  the  tune  was  composed  in  the  castle 
of  Coburg,  during  the  period  of  the  Diet  of  Augsburg, 
1530.  The  latter  date  is  the  one  which  has  been  gen- 
erally accepted,  a  strong  point  in  its  favor  being  the 
fact  that  Luther  left  at  Coburg  a  copy  of  the  tune  in 
his  own  handwriting,  dated  1530.  The  first  publica- 
tion of  the  tune  was  in  Kophl's  '  Psalmen  und  geist- 
liche  Lieder,'  printed  at  Strasburg  about  1538.  The 
original  form  of  the  melody,  as  seen  in  this  collection, 
is  somewhat  different  from  that  now  in  use,  being  al- 
most entirely  free  from  'passing  notes,'  and  having 
several  other  variations  in  the  rhythm.  The  form 
which  is  now  employed  was  first  adopted  by  Sebas- 
tian Bach. 

"Several  of  the  great  composers  have  made  use 
of  'Ein'  feste  Burg'  in  their  works.  In  'L,es  Hugue- 
nots '  Meyerbeer  puts  it  into  the  mouths  of  the  old 
Huguenot  soldier  and  his  companions — not  very  ap- 
propriately, as  we  think:  the  death  song  of  the  Hugue- 
nots was  not  likely  to  have  been  a  German  chorale,  but 
rather 'one  of  the  melodies  set  to  Marot  and  Beza's 
psalms.  A  more  fitting  use  of  the  tune  was  made  by 
Mendelssohn  in  his  'Reformation  Symphony,'  where 
it  is  given  without  the  passing  notes  in  the  initial 
strain,  and  without  the  repetition  of  the  first  two 
lines.  Other  notable  uses  of  the  melody  are  by 
Bach,  in  several  of  his  cantatas;  by  Raff,  in  an  over- 
ture, and  by  Wagner,  in  his  '  Kaiser  Marsch.'  " 


ELLIOTT.  43 

ELLIOTT. 

DR.  LOWELL   MASON,    1792-1S72.      SEE   CHARLOTTE   ELLIOTT,   "  STORY   OF   THE 
HYMNS,"    17S9-1S71. 

This  tune  was  written  by  Dr.  Mason  for  the  words 
"  Just  as  I  am,"  by  Charlotte  Elliott.  The  hymn  is 
also  sung  to  ancient  music  arranged  for  popular  use 
under  the  name  of  Hamburg,  by  Dr.  Lowell  Mason. 

"A  faithful  pastor  of  a  small  flock  once  met  one 
of  the  young  ladies  of  his  congregation  on  the  street 
as  she  was  on  the  way  to  her  dressmaker's  to  have  a 
dress  made  for  a  ball.  Stopping  her,  he  asked  her 
errand;  she  frankly  told  him. 

U<I  wish,'  he  said,  'you  were  a  Christian  woman; 
that  you  would  forsake  all  these  frivolities  and  learn 
to  live  nearer  to  God.  Wont  you  stay  away  from 
this  ball,  if  for  nothing  else,  because  I  ask  it?' 

"She  replied,  (I  wish  you  would  mind  your  own 
business,  sir.     Good-day.' 

"This  young  lady  went  to  the  ball  and  danced 
all  night.  She  went  home,  and  when  her  head  was 
at  rest  upon  her  pillow,  conscience  began  to  do  its 
work.  She  thought  how  she  had  insulted  her  pastor, 
perhaps  the  best  friend  she  had  on  earth.  This  tor- 
ment of  conscience  went  on  for  three  days,  until  she 
could  endure  it  no  longer. 

"Going  to  her  pastor's  study,  she  told  him  how 
sorry  she  was  that  she  had  said  words  that  had  caused 
his  heart  to  ache.  '  I  have  been  the  most  miserable 
girl   in  the  world  for  the  past  three  days,'  she  said, 


44  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 


and  now  I  want  to  become  a  Christian;  I  want  to  be 


saved.     Oh,  what  must  I  do  to  be  saved  ? 

"The  old  pastor,  with  his  heart  full  of  com- 
passion and  sympathy  for  the  contrite  spirit  before 
him,  pointed  her  to  the  Lamb  of  God,  and  told 
her  that  she  must  give  herself  to  God  just  as  she 
was. 

"  'What!  Just  as  I  am,  and  I  one  of  the  most 
sinful  creatures  in  the  world?  You  surely  do  not 
mean  to  say  that  God  will  accept  me  just  as  I  am  !' 

u  'I  mean  just  that,'  was  the  pastor's  reply.  'God 
wants  you  to  come  to  him  just  as  you  are.' 

"The  young  lady  went  home,  and  retiring  to  her 
room,  kneeled  beside  her  bed  and  prayed  God  to  take 
her,  just  as  she  was.  Reaching  to  a  chair  that  stood 
by  the  bed,  she  took  a  piece  of  paper  and  a  pencil 
that  were  there,  and  under  the  holy  influences  that 
were  at  work  upon  her  wrote  the  verses  of  that  hymn 
so  dear  to  the  heart  of  every  true  Christian: 

"Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea, 
But  that  thy  blood  was  shed  for  me, 
And  that  thou  bidst  me  come  to  thee, 
O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come ! 

"Just  as  I  am,  and  waiting  not 
To  rid  my  soul  of  one  dark  blot, 
To  thee,  whose  blood  can  cleanse  each  spot, 
O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come ! 

"Just  as  I  am,  though  tossed  about 
With  many  a  conflict,  many  a  doubt, 
With  fears  within  and  foes  without, 
O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come ! 


ELLIOTT.  45 

"Just  as  I  am,  poor,  wretched,  blind, 
Sight,  riches,  healing  of  the  mind, 
Yea,  all  1  need  in  thee  to  find, 
O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come ! 

"Just  as  I  am  ;  thou  wilt  receive, 
Wilt  welcome,  pardon,  cleanse,  relieve; 
Because  thy  promise  1  believe, 
O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come ! 

"Just  as  I  am,  thy  love  unknown 
Hath  broken  every  barrier  down; 
Now  to  be  thine,  yea,  thine  alone, 
O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come !" 

John  B.  Gough  once  told,  in  a  lecture,  an  anecdote 
of  a  blunder  he  once  made  which  illustrates  the  say- 
ing that  " appearances  are  deceitful."  Sitting  in  a 
city  church  one  Sunday  morning,  he  was  annoyed  by 
the  looks  of  a  man  whom  the  sexton  showed  into  the 
same  pew.  His  appearance  made  a  very  unfavorable 
impression  on  Mr.  Gough,  for  his  face  was  mottled 
like  -castile  soap,  his  lips  twitched,  and  every  now 
and  then  his  mouth  would  twist  out  a  singular  sound. 
Mr.  Gough  moved  away  from  him  to  the  extreme  end 
of  the  pew. 

Presently  the  congregation  rose  to  sing  that  most 
touching  hymn  which  begins  with, 

"Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea, 
But  that  thy  blood  was  shed  for  me." 

"He  can't  be  so  disagreeable  after  all,"  said  Mr. 
Gough  to  himself,  seeing  that  the  man  knew  the  hymn 
and  sang  it.     Mr.  Gough  moved  up  nearer. 

"He   would    sing,"   said    the    orator,    telling   the 


46  THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

story.  "It  was  awful,  positively  awful.  I  never 
heard  anything  like  it.  Kvery  now  and  then  his  lips 
would  twitch  out  that  strange  noise.  Then  he  would 
commence  again  and  sing  faster  to  catch  up  with  the 
other  singers,  and  would  run  ahead.  When  that  stan- 
za was  finished  and  the  organist  was  playing  the  inter- 
lude, he  leaned  towards  me  and  whispered,  '  Would 
you  be  kind  enough  to  give  me  the  first  line  of  the 
next  verse  ?'     I  did  so: 

"  'Just  as  I  am,  poor,  wretched,  blind.' 

"  'That's  it!'  said  he;  'and  I  am  blind— God  help 

me!'    and   the  tears  ran  down   his  face — 'and  I'm 

wretched,  and  I  am  paralytic'     And  then  he  tried  to 

sing, 

"  'Just  as  I  am,  poor,  wretched,  blind.' 

"At  that  moment  it  seemed  to  me  that  I  never 
heard  in  my  life  a  Beethoven  symphony  with  as  much 
music  in  it  as  in  the  blundering  singing  of  that  hymn 

by  the  pOOr  paralytic."  Youth's  Companion. 


EVENTIDE. 

ADAPTED  FROM  THE  GERMAN  BY  WILLIAM  HENRY  MONK,   1823. 

Mr.  Monk  was  born  in  London  in  1823.  In  youth 
he  attended  the  concerts  of  the  Sacred  Harmonic 
Society,  and  they  decided  for  him  his  profession  and 
the  character  of  his  work.  They  revealed  to  him  his 
soul  and  led  him  to  a  consciousness  of  its  powers.  He 
studied  music  under  noted  masters,  became  an  organ- 


EVENTIDE.  47 

ist,  and  succeeded  John  Hullah  as  Professor  of  Vocal 
Music  in  King's  College. 

In  1S51  he  became  Professor  of  Music  at  the  School 
for  the  Indigent  Blind. 

He  was  one  of  the  musical  editors  of  "  Hymns  An- 
cient and  Modern,"  and  has  made  many  contributions 
to  modern  hymnals. 

Of  the  author  of  the  hymn  so  happily  married  to 
this  tune,  "  Eventide,"  we  have  this  account: 

In  1818  an  English  Episcopal  minister,  at  the  close 
of  a  brilliant  and  much-applauded  life,  sent  for  a 
neighboring  clergyman  and  said  to  him, 

"I  am  about  to  die,  and  I  am  unprepared." 

The  two  ministers  read  their  Bibles  together  and 
prayed.  The  invalid  died  in  peace,  and  the  visitor 
received  from  the  scene  an  impression  that  influenced 
his  whole  life.  He  resolved  to  devote  himself  wholly 
to  the  service  of  God,  and  that  with  such  humility  and 
self- forgetful  zeal  that  any  event  in  life  would  find 
him  prepared. 

That  visitor  was  Henry  Francis  Lyte,  the  author  of 
the  well-known  hymns  beginning, 

"  Abide  with  me,  fast  falls  the  eventide," 
and 

"Jesus,  I  my  cross  have  taken." 

He  relinquished  all  selfish  ambitions,  and  accepted 
a  curacy  on  the  wild  coast  of  Devon,  where  he  might 
work  for  Christ  among  the  poor.  He  gathered  here  a 
large  Sunday-school  from  the  sea-faring  population, 
preached  to  the  sailors,  and  devoted    himself  with  a 


48  THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

self-consuming  zeal   to  the   humble  duties   that  met 
him  on  every  hand. 

He  was  removed  from  the  society  of  the  great  and 
learned,  yet  he  was  very  happy.  He  thus  tells  his  ex- 
perience in  a  poem  that  we  doubt  that  many  of  our 
readers  have  seen: 

Long  did  I  toil,  and  knew  no  earthly  rest; 

Far  did  1  rove,  and  found  no  certain  home; 
At  last  I  sought  them  in  his  sheltering  breast 

Who  opes  his  arms  and  bids  the  weary  come. 
With  him  I  found  a  home,  a  rest  divine ; 
And  I  since  then  am  his,  and  he  is  mine. 

Yes,  he  is  mine !  and  naught  of  earthly  things, 
Not  all  the  charms  of  pleasure,  wealth,  or  power, 

The  fame  of  heroes  or  the  pomp  of  kings, 
Could  tempt  me  to  forget  his  love  ail  hour. 

Go,  worthless  world,  I  cry,  with  all  that 's  thine ! 

Go  !  I  my  Saviour's  am,  and  he  is  mine. 

The  good  I  have  is  from  his  stores  supplied ; 

The  ill  is  only  what  he  deems  the  best ; 
He  for  my  friend,  I  'm  rich  with  naught  beside, 

And  poor  without  him,  though  of  all  possessed. 
Changes  may  come;  I  take  or  I  resign, 
Content  while  I  am  his,  while  he  is  mine. 


FEDERAL  STREET. 

HENRY   K.   OLIVER,    1800-1885.      SEE   MERTON. 

IT  was  a  part  of  the  daily  programme  of  the 
"Boston  Peace  Jubilee"  of  1872,  inaugurated  by  P.  S. 
Gilmore,  to  close  each  day's  work  with  a  hymn-tune. 
On  the  "President's  day"  (so  called  because  of  the 
presence  of  President  Grant),  the  Coliseum  building, 


FED  URAL  STREET.  49 

in  which  the  concerts  were  given,  was  crowded  with 
an  immense  multitude — forty  thousand  people  being 
in  the  audience  and  twenty  thousand  in  the  chorus 
and  orchestra.  The  well-known  ' '  Federal  Street ' '  was 
the  tune  for  the  day;  and  when  its  turn  came,  Mr. 
Zerrahn,  the  conductor,  beckoning  out  from  the  crowd 
of  singers  its  composer,  Henry  K.  Oliver,  of  Salem — 
a  man  well  advanced  in  years — led  him  to  the  con- 
ductor's stand  and  gave  him  the  baton.  At  its  signal 
the  great  organ  gave  its  mighty  utterance,  and  then 
chorus  and  orchestra  and  the  audience  (which  rose) 
took  up  the  strain;  and  never  was  a  hymn  given  forth 
in  such  a  swelling  volume  of  harmony,  the  multitude 
seeming  thoroughly  familiar  writh  it,  and  prepared  to 
sing  its  simple,  artless,  yet  grand  measures.  I  doubt 
whether  a  dozen  persons  in  the  whole  assemblage 
knew  how  the  tune  came  into  being.  It  was  in  this 
wise:  The  composer  had,  after  his  graduation,  held 
various  positions,  from  teacher  to  treasurer  of  Massa- 
chusetts, and  had  been  much  before  the  public,  yet  he 
had  been  always  from  childhood  devotedly  fond  of 
music.  When  he  entered  college  his  father,  wholly 
unmusical,  prohibited  his  attempting  to  play  any 
instrument.  His  musical  proclivities  seem  to  have 
come  from  his  mother,  she  being  a  fine  singer;  and 
singers  were  all  the  eight  children  save  one.  But  the 
prohibition  of  the  father  was  ineffectual,  and  the  son 
became  familiar  with  half  a  dozen  instruments,  in- 
cluding the  flute  and  organ.  He  did  not  attempt 
composition   till   he   was  thirty-one    years  old,  when 

Tii.-  Btory  of  the  Tunes.  <I 


50  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

one  afternoon,  in  his  library,  he  read  to  its  close  an 
affecting  story  terminating  with  the  saddest  results. 
Laying  down  the  volume,  and  thinking  of  what  he 
had  read,  there  came  into  his  mind  the  last  verse  of 
Mrs.  Steele's  hymn, 

"So  fades  the  lovely,  blooming  flower." 
As  he  repeated  the  verse  an  unbidden  melody  came 
with  it;  and  sitting  down  to  a  pianoforte  in  the 
room,  he  harmonized  the  melody  and  put  it  on  pa- 
per, with  a  change  of  the  initial  word  of  the  verse 
from  "Then"  to  "See."  When  thus  scored  the  com- 
poser threw  the  paper  into  the  drawer  of  his  table. 
There  it  remained  a  couple  of  years,  when  Dr.  Lowell 
Mason  came  to  Salem  to  teach  music  to  classes  of 
both  young  and  adult.  Towards  the  close  of  the 
course  Dr.  Mason  asked  if  any  pupil  had  ever  at- 
tempted composition,  and  if  so,  he  said  he  would  be 
happy  to  examine  it.  The  tune  in  the  drawer  at 
once  came  to  the  composer's  mind,  and  it  was  placed 
in  Dr.  Mason's  hands.  On  returning  it,  the  latter 
asked  permission  to  use  it  in  his  forthcoming  work 
called  "Boston  Academy's  Collection  of  Church  Mu- 
sic." Assent  being  gladly  given,  it  was  necessary  to 
give  the  tune  a  name,  and  he  decided  to  call  it  after 
the  name  of  the  street  in  Salem  in  which  his  wife  was 
reared,  wooed,  won,  and  married,  and  from  which,  to 
the  music  of  the  same  tune,  she  was  many  years 
afterwards  buried.  "Federal  Street"  proving  an  ac- 
ceptable tune,  it  was  followed  by  "Harmony  Grove," 
"Morning,"  "Walnut  Grove,"  "Merton,"  "Vesper," 


FLEE  AS  A  BIRD   TO   YOUR  MOUNTAIN.  51 

"Hudson,"  "Bosworth,"  "Salisbury  Plain,"  etc., 
several  motets  and  anthems,  and  a  Te  Drum.  The 
author  subsequently  gathered  these  into  a  book,  pub- 
lished by  DitSOll  &  CO.  From  "Olden-Time  Music." 


FLEE  AS  A   BIRD  TO   YOUR  MOUNTAIN. 

Flee  as  a  bird  to  your  mountain, 

Thou  who  art  weary  of  sin  ; 
Go  to  the  clear-flowing  fountain, 

Where  you  may  wash  and  be  clean  ; 
Fly,  for  the  avenger  is  near  thee, 
Call,  and  the  Saviour  will  hear  thee, 
He  on  his  bosom  will  bear  thee, 

Thou  who  art  weary  of  sin, 

Oh,  thou  who  art  weary  of  sin. 

He  will  protect  thee  for  ever, 

Wipe  every  falling  tear; 
He  will  forsake  thee,  oh,  never, 

Sheltered  so  tenderly  there  ; 
Haste  then,  the  hours  are  flying, 
Spend  not  the  moments  in  sighing, 
Cease  from  your  sorrow  and  crying, 

The  Saviour  will  wipe  every  tear, 

The  Saviour  will  wipe  every  tear. 

Words  by  Mrs.  Dana. 

Franz  Wilhelm  Abt  was  born  near  Zurich,  1819. 
He  was  chapel-master  at  Brunswick.  He  composed 
many  popular  ballads;  one  of  these,  "When  the  swal- 
lows homeward  fly,"  has  been  very  popular  in  this 
country,  and  is  often  sung  to  the  words  of  Charles 
Wesley's  Hymn,  "  Jesus,  Lover  of  My  Soul." 


52  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

GRANDER  THAN  OCEAN. 

Words  and  music  by  Prof.  W.  Sherwin,  of  the 
New  England  Conservatory  of  Music  (1889).  It  was 
written  during  a  vacation  rest,  on  one  of  the  beaches 
near  New  York,  while  the  author  was  lying  in  the 
shade  wTatching  the  ocean.  Prof.  Sherwin  was  born 
at  Ashfield,  Mass.,  in  1826. 


GREENVILLE. 

JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU,    I712-1778. 

The  words  of  this  hymn, 

"Lord,  dismiss  us  with  thy  blessing," 
are  often  sung  to  a  Sicilian  melody  called  the  u  Si- 
cilian Hymn,"  but  generally  to  "Greenville"  or 
"Rousseau's  Dream."  Rousseau,  a  most  erratic 
genius,  was  born  at  Geneva,  1712.  He  was  a  man  of 
restless  habits,  changeable  moods,  and  many  contra- 
dictions, but  yet  of  noble  aspirations  and  impulses  at 
times,  and  he  produced  works  both  of  good  and  evil 
influence.  Of  the  works  of  philosophy  and  the 
music  and  poetry  of  his  half-crazed  life,  "Green- 
ville," kept  alive  by  the  church  he  was  accustomed 
to  ridicule,  seems  the  longest  to  endure. 


HAMBURG. 

ARRANGED    BY   LOWELL   MASON. 


HINSDALE.  53 

HEBRON. 

ARRANGED    BY   LOWELL  MASON. 


HE  LEADETH  ME. 

TUNE   BY  WM.  B.  BRADBURY,    lSl6-lS6S. 

There  were  two  pupils  of  Dr.  Mason's  whose 
hymn- tunes  were  destined  to  become  very  popular, 
William  B.  Bradbury  and  George  Frederick  Root. 
They  were  perhaps  associate  workers  rather  than 
pupils,  but  each  derived  his  inspiration  in  part  from 
Dr.  Mason.  Mr.  Bradbury  was  the  pioneer  in  the 
publishing  of  Sunday-school  music  books,  thus  be- 
ginning the  adaptation  of  religious  songs  to  children. 
Who  does  not  remember  "The  Jubilee"  and  "The 
Shawm  "  ? 

William  B.  Bradbury  was  born  at  York,  Me.,  in 
1816.  His  father  was  a  Revolutionary  soldier  and  a 
choir-leader.  Musical  impulses  came  to  young  Brad- 
bury on  his  father's  farm.  He  went  to  Boston  in 
1830,  where  for  the  first  time  he  heard  an  organ.  He 
went  abroad,  studied  in  Leipzig,  and  returning  de- 
voted himself  to  music.  He  died  in  great  serenity 
and  happiness  at  Montclair,  N.  J.,  1S6S. 


HINSDALE. 
The  reputed  composer  of  this  tune  is  George  Hins- 


54  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

dale,  whose  daughter,  Phoebe  Hinsdale  Brown,  wrote 

the  hymn, 

"  I  love  to  steal  a  while  away." 

See  "  Monson  "  and  "  Story  of  the  Hymns." 


J.  B.  DYKES.      1823-1876. 


SEE  "Heber"  in  " Story  of  the  Hymns,"  and 
"Lead,  kindly  Light,"  p.  84.  This  is  one  of  the 
grandest  hymns  and  tunes  of  recent  years,  and  one  of 
the  best  for  use  at  the  beginning  of  any  religious  ser- 
vice. 


"HOLD  THE  FORT 7" 

P.   P.    BLISS.      1838-1876. 

This  hymn,  with  its  tune,  though  almost  univer- 
sally known,  has  little  claim  to  literary  or  musical 
merit,  and  yet  it  is  inspiring.  It  was  suggested  by  an 
incident  in  the  war  for  the  Union.  A  message  was 
waved  from  Gen.  Sherman  to  Gen.  G.  M.  Corse,  when 
the  latter  was  besieged  at  Altoona:  uGen.  Sherman 
says,  '  Hold  fast.    We  are  coming.7  " 

The  signal  flag  then  used  is  still  exhibited.  It 
was  recently  shown  at  a  Soldiers'  Fair  in  Horticultural 
Hall,  Boston,  being  loaned  by  A.  D.  Frankenberry,  of 
Point  Marion,  Pa.,  who  was  a  member  of  the  signal 
detachment  on  Kenesaw  Mountain  in  October,  1863. 


-HOLD   THE  FOR  T."  55 

Ho  !  my  comrades,  see  the  signal 

Waving  in  the  sky! 
Reinforcements  now  appearing, 

Victory  is  nigh. 
11  Hold  the  fort,  for  I  am  coming  !" 

Jesus  signals  still ; 
Wave  the  answer  back  to  heaven, 

"  By  thy  grace  we  will!" 

The  "  Memoir  of  P.  P.  Bliss,"  published  by  A.  S. 
Barnes  &  Co.,  N.  Y.,  gives  the  following  picturesque 
account  of  a  visit  of  Mr.  Bliss  to  the  scene  of  his  fa- 
mous song.  Mr.  Bliss  was  on  his  way  to  fill  an  ap- 
pointment at  Augusta,  Georgia. 

u  He  stopped  at  Marietta  on  a  beautiful  April 
morning,  and,  after  dinner  with  the  writer,  rode  out 
two  miles  to  the  mountain.  The  carriage  left  us  about 
three-fourths  of  a  mile  from  the  summit,  and  we  pur- 
sued our  journey  on  foot.  Upon  the  summit,  the  ruins 
of  the  earthwork  near  which  Gen.  Polk  was  killed, 
and  part  of  the  framework  of  the  signal  station  from 
which  Sherman  had  the  message  signalled  to  hold  the 
fort,  were  found. 

"It  was  a  bright,  clear,  sunny  day,  and  the  laud- 
scape  in  every  direction  was  before  our  view  from  this 
remarkable  elevation.  Altoona  Mountain,  where  the 
fort  was  held,  could  be  plainly  seen  twenty  miles  to 
the  north;  and  the  intervening  valley  across  which 
Sherman  hurried  his  troops  was  at  our  feet. 

"Bliss  enjoyed  the  scene  to  the  full.  He  took  in 
all  of  its  beauty  and  all  of  its  inspiration.  We  read 
the  passage  concerning  the  coming  of  our  Lord  from 
heaven — knelt  in  prayer  and  consecration — and  then 


56      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

sang  'Hold  the  Fort/  looking  out  upon  the  distant 
mountain,  looking  up  to  the  clear  blue  sky,  and  hoping 
and  almost  expecting  that  Jesus  might  then  appear,  so 
near  he  seemed  to  us  that  April  day.  I  thank  my 
Heavenly  Father  that  I  was  led  to  so  urge  my  friend 
and  brother  to  make  that  mountain  visit.  He  reck- 
oned it,  while  he  lived,  as  one  of  his  blessed  days,  and 
the  memory  of  it  to  me  is,  and  will  continue  to  be 
while  life  lasts,  a  transfiguration  scene.  How  little  did 
we  think  that  day  that,  ere  the  year  should  close,  for 
him  the  battle  would  be  won,  and  he  be  taken  to  the 
mountains  of  glory,  to  signal  for  his  Lord  to  the  sol- 
diers in  the  valley,  '  Cheer,  my  comrades,  cheer!'  " 


HOME,  SWEET  HOME. 

COMMONLY  SUPPOSED  TO   BE  A   SICILIAN  AIR,   ADAPTED  BY  SIR   H.  R.  BISHOP. 

1786-1855- 

The  doubt  as  to  the  authorship  of  the  beautiful 
melody  of  "Home,  Sweet  Home"  still  appears  to  be 
unsettled.  Controversies  are  every  now  and  then 
started  in  the  newspapers  on  the  subject.  With  the 
view  of  putting  an  end  to  them  once  for  all,  I  write 
this  letter  to  prove  to  the  most  incredulous  that  the 
air  is  English,  and  was  the  composition  of  the  very 
eminent  and  gifted  musician,  the  late  Sir  Henry  R. 
Bishop.  In  one  of  the  many  conversations  on  well- 
known  English  melodies  with  that  gentleman  I  took 
occasion  to  ask  him  for  information  on  the  subject  of 


HOME,  SWEET  HOME.  57 

u  Home,  Sweet  Home,"  the  authorship  of  which  was 
often  attributed  to  him  and  as  often  denied  by  many 
who  claimed  it  as  a  national  Sicilian  air  which  Sir 
Henry  had  discovered  and  rearranged.  He  thereupon 
favored  me  with  the  whole  history.  He  had  been 
engaged  in  his  early  boyhood  to  edit  a  collection  of 
the  national  melodies  of  all  countries.  In  the  course 
of  his  labors  he  discovered  that  he  had  no  Sicilian 
melody  worthy  of  reproduction,  and  Sir  Henry  thought 
he  would  invent  one.  The  result  was  the  now  well- 
known  air  of  "  Home,  Sweet  Home,"  which  he  com- 
posed to  the  verses  of  an  American  author,  Mr.  How- 
ard Payne,  then  residing  in  England.  When  the 
collection  was  published  the  melody  became  so  popu- 
lar that,  to  use  a  common  phrase,  "It  took  the  town 
by  storm,"  and  several  musical  publishers,  believing 
it  to  be  Sicilian  and  non-copyright,  reissued  it. 

Charles  Mackay,  in  "London  Telegraph." 

J.  H.  Payne,  who  wrote  the  words  in  1823,  was 
an  almost  homeless  wanderer.  His  song  enriched  his 
publishers,  but  not  his  own  sorrowful  life.  It  was 
probably  composed  in  Paris,  when  Payne  was  starv- 
ing in  an  attic.  "How  often,"  he  says,  "have  I 
been  in  the  heart  of  Paris,  Berlin,  London,  or  other 
city,  and  heard  persons  singing  or  musicians  playing 
my  song,  without  a  shilling  to  buy  myself  a  meal  or 
a  place  to  lay  my  head." 


3* 


5S  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

HOPE. 

W.    B.   BRADBURY,    1S16-1868. 

■  My  hope  is  built  on  nothing  less." 

About  the  beginning  of  this  century  there  lived  on 
Upper  Thames  Street,  London,  an  obscure  family  by 
the  name  of  Mote.  The  father  and  mother  were  not 
Christians,  but  their  son  Edward  became  interested 
in  religion  while  a  youth.  He  has  related  his  expe- 
rience of  saving  faith  in  a  valued  hymn. 

When  sixteen  years  of  age  he  entered  Tottenham 
Court  Chapel,  where  he  heard  John  Hyatt,  one  of 
England's  most  persuasive  ministers,  preach.  "My 
parents  having  no  fear  of  God,"  he  says,  "I  went  to 
a  school  where  no  Bible  was  allowed,  so  that  I  was 
totally  ignorant  of  religion  when  I  entered  that  house 
of  worship." 

His  conscience  was  awakened  by  the  preacher's 
declaration  of  the  sinfulness  of  the  human  heart  and 
the  necessity  of  a  changed  nature.  He  left  the  chapel 
in  sorrow.  For  two  years  he  clearly  saw  the  unwor- 
thiness  of  a  life  without  God,  but  he  did  not  appre- 
hend the  promises  of  the  gospel. 

It  was  Good  Friday,  a  day  when  the  English 
Church  holds  a  solemn  service  in  memory  of  the  suf- 
ferings and  death  of  Christ.  That  morning  Rev.  Mr. 
Bennet,  a  highly  spiritual  preacher  from  Birmingham, 
was  to  fill  one  of  the  London  pulpits,  and  the  lad 
determined  to  hear  him  preach. 

The  services  were  very  solemn  and  brought  vivid- 


HYMN  TO   THE  NATIVITY.  59 

ly  to  mind  the  mission  of  Christ  to  the  world.  The 
youth  listened  with  awe. 

The  text  was  announced:  "The  Lord  hath  laid 
upon  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all." 

"Upon  him!"  The  youth  saw  the  gospel  in  a 
new  light — as  a  saving  power.  He  looked  to  Christ 
as  his  Saviour;  committing  the  interests  of  his  soul 
to  him,  he  rejoiced.  Years  passed,  and  this  experi- 
ence he  expressed  in  a  hymn  which  all  have  sung: 

My  hope  is  built  on  nothing  less 
Than  Jesus'  blood  and  righteousness; 
I  dare  not  trust  the  sweetest  frame, 
But  wholly  lean  on  Jesus'  name. 
On  Christ,  the  Solid  Rock,  I  stand; 
All  other  ground  is  sinking  sand. 


"HOW  PRECIOUS  THE  NAME." 

JEREMIAH    INGALLS,    1764-1838. 

This  old  revival  melody  was  published  in  "  Chris- 
tian Harmony"  in  1830. 


HYMN  TO  THE  NATIVITY:  MILTON. 

MUSIC  BY  JOHN  KNOWLES   PAINE.       1839. 

Prof.  Paine  was  born  at  Portland,  Me.,  1839.  He 
became  an  organist  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  and  studied 
in  Germany,  where  he  gave  organ  recitals.  In  1S62 
he  was  appointed  Professor  of  Music  at  Harvard  Uni- 
versity. He  is  the  author  of  the  oratorio  "St.  Peter," 
the   "Hymn  to  the  Nativity,"   and  numerous  other 


60  THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

works  of  the  highest  order.  His  oratorios  have  been 
sung  on  several  notable  occasions  by  the  Handel  and 
Haydn  Society,  Boston. 


"I  AM  SO  GLAD  THA  T  OUR  FA  THER  IN  HE  A  VEN? 

P.   P.    BLISS,    1838-1876. 

Mr.  Bliss  was  the  heart  and  soul  of  the  first  volume 
of  the  "Gospel  Hymns."  The  present  hymn  was  the 
rallying  song  of  the  great  Scottish  revival. 

"  Oh,  that  song  !"  said  a  young  man  who  attended 
a  Sunday-school  meeting  in  a  hamlet  in  Missouri, 
under  the  work  of  the  American  Sunday-school  Union. 
u  I  could  not  get  away  from  it,  and  it  has  saved  me." 


"IF  I  WERE  A    VOICED 

WORDS  BY   DR.    CHARLES  MACKAY.      MUSIC   BY   ISAAC   BEVERLY  WOODBURY. 
1 8 19-1858. 

IT  originally  appeared  in  the  "-Song  Crown,"  and 

is  used  in  "Winnowed  Hymns."     Who  has  not  heard 

"  Tell  me,  ye  winged  winds," 

"  If  I  were  a  voice,  a  persuasive  voice," 
and 

"  Cheer,  boys,  cheer  for  country,  mother  country!" 

Dr.  Mackay,  the  author  of  the  above-mentioned 
songs,  was  an  old  man  in  1887,  living  at  Fern  Dell, 
Dorking,  England.  His  songs  and  poems  seem  to 
belong  to  America  rather  than  to  England.  He  al- 
ways loved  America,  and  was  very  American  in  his 
sympathies.     Charles  Sumner  delighted  to  quote  his 


"IF  I  II FRF  A    I '( II l '/■:. '  6 1 

"Good  time  coming,"  and  employs  it  as  a  prophecy 
in  one  of  his  greatest  speeches.  All  of  our  popular 
music  books  contain  Dr.  Mackay's  songs.  His  influ- 
ence musically  in  American  households  and  schools 
has  been  greater  than  that  of  many  of  our  own  poets. 
His  political  songs  have  afforded  many  texts  for  polit- 
ical reformers  in  America  as  well  as  in  England. 

Dr.  Mackay  was  first  appreciated  as  a  poet  in 
America,  and  he  has  nobly  expressed  his  gratitude  in 
both  prose  and  verse. 

"When  I  was  a  young  man,"  he  writes,  "I  pub- 
lished a  volume  of  poems.  Seven  copies  only  were 
sold  at  the  time.     I  was  disappointed." 

"But  comfort,"  he  says,  "came  to  me  from  a 
wholly  unexpected  quarter." 

This  comfort  took  the  form  of  a  letter  from  James 
T.  Fields,  Boston,  Mass.  It  expressed  appreciation 
of  his  work  and  asked  for  his  autograph. 

It  has  been  Dr.  Mackay's  ambition  to  be  the  poet 
of  the  people.  His  "London  Lyrics,"  "Voices  of  the 
Crowd,"  and  "Songs  of  Emigration"  are  popular 
tones  and  echoes.  As  an  explanation  of  his  purpose 
in  writing,  he  quotes  with  approval  a  remark  made  to 
him  by  Emerson:  "The  writers  are  the  happiest  and 
most  to  be  envied  who  do  not  seek  either  fame,  popu- 
larity, or  reward,  but  who  write  as  the  birds  sing  or 
the  stars  shine,  because  it  is  their  nature  to  do  so." 

In  regard   to  the  author  of  the  music,   which   is 
very  beautiful  and  popular,  Dr.  George  P.  Root  Si 
in  his  reminiscences: 


62  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"L   B.  Woodbury  was  two  or  three  years  older 
than  myself,  and  had  commenced  his  musical  work  a 
year  or   two  before  me.      He  had  a  small  room  in 
Tremont  Row,  Boston.     He  was  a  most  indefatigable 
student  and  worker.     I  think  it  was  during  my  first 
winter  in  Boston  that  he  taught  a  singing-school  in 
Beverly,   and   often  walked   back   to   Boston,   fifteen 
miles,  after  nine  o'clock  at  night,  to  be  ready  for  his 
lessons  in  the  morning.     We  who  were  inured  to  the 
hardships  of  New  England  country  life  in  those  days 
did  not  think  of  such  things  as  they  would  be  thought 
of  now.     Mr.  Woodbury  was  very  economical,  and  in 
a  year  or  two  had  saved  enough  money  to  go  to  Lon- 
don and  take  lessons  for  a  few  months.     Soon  after  he 
came  home  he  began  to  write,  and  it  was  not  long 
before  he  published  his  first  book  of  church  music. 
He  was  prosperous  and  very  ambitious.     He  said  to 
me  once,  '  When  I  die  I  shall  surprise  the  world,'  and 
he  did.     He  was  not  strong  constitutionally,  and  the 
flame  burned  so  fiercely  that  the  end  for  him  came 
early.     It  was  then  found  that  he  had  left  almost  his 
entire  estate  to  found  a  Musical  Institution — the  money 
to  be  used  for  that  purpose  after  it  had  been  invested 
long  enough  to  produce  a  certain  sum.     But  the  law 
stepped  in  and  changed  this  disposition  of  his  fortune 
in  favor  of  his  wife  and  children.     Mr.  Woodbury  was 
a  genial,  pleasant  gentleman,  and,  because  he  wrote 
only  simple  music,  never  was  credited  (by  those  who 
did  not  know  him)  with  the  musical  ability  and  cul- 
ture that  he  really  possessed." 


"IF  WITH  ALL   YOUR  HEARTS."  63 


"IF  WITH  ALL   YOUR  HEARTS." 

FELIX   MENDELSSOHN   BARTHOLDV,    1809-1847. 

Felix  Mendelssohn  Bartholdy,  commonly 
known  as  Mendelssohn,  was  the  son  of  a  Hamburg 
banker,  and  was  born  in  1809.  At  the  age  of  eight  he 
could  play  at  sight  the  scores  of  Bach. 

"When  a  young  man  he  visited  England,  and  his 
reception  was  so  cordial,  his  genius  seemed  so  admira- 
bly adapted  to  the  tastes  of  the  people,  and  his  suc- 
cesses were  so  brilliant  and  uninterrupted,  that  he 
thereafter  gave  his  affections  and  a  great  portion  of 
his  artist  life  to  the  English  people. 

"He  wrote  the  oratorio  '  St.  Paul,'  which  placed 
him  in  the  front  rank  of  great  composers.  Later  he 
was  invited  to  compose  an  oratorio  for  a  national  fes- 
tival to  be  given  in  Birmingham,  England.  He  chose 
for  his  subject  '  Elijah,'  and  gave  his  soul  to  the  com- 
position with  a  self-consuming  zeal. 

"  That  was  a  grand  occasion  when  the  oratorio  was 
first  produced.  It  was  the  summer  of  1846.  Busy 
Birmingham  lay  circled  with  gardens  of  flowers;  peo- 
ple of  rank,  genius,  wit,  flocked  thither  to  listen  to 
the  masterpiece  of  the  king  of  composers.  The  assem- 
bly represented  the  best  ability  of  the  world. 

11  All  was  expectation  when  Mendelssohn  appeared. 
The  oratorio  opened.  There  were  four  solemn  trum- 
pet blasts,  and  Elijah,  the  man  of  the  desert,  who  de- 
nounced the  pagan  altars  that  flamed  on  every  hill, 


64       THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

appeared  and  cursed  the  land  with  famine  and  death. 
The  music  grew  tumultuous,  representing  the  distress 
of  the  people.  The  apostles  cry  aloud,  '  Help,  Lord!' 
and  choruses,  heavy  with  affliction,  follow.  Hope 
dawns  with  the  magical  tenor  solo,  '  If  with  all  your 
hearts  ye  truly  seek  me,'  and  choral  quartets  relieve 
the  distress  of  the  prophet  with  the  promise,  (  He  shall 
give  his  angels  charge  over  thee.' 

"Again  the  trumpets  sound,  and  Elijah  appears  in 
presence  of  the  king  and  announces  the  end  of  the 
famine.  He  calls  the  heathen  priests  to  Mt.  Car- 
mel,  and  tells  them  that  there  the  true  God  will 
manifest  himself  in  fire.  The  scene  on  Mt.  Carmel, 
where  the  frantic  pagans  call  upon  Baal,  leads  to  one 
of  the  most  weird  and  awe-inspiring  choruses  ever 
produced  in  music;  and  when  the  first  part  of  the 
oratorio  ended,  the  great  audience  knew  that  Men- 
delssohn had  produced  an  immortal  work,  had  cre- 
ated, as  it  were,  a  new  orb  of  music  which  was  to 
shine  for  all  time. 

"The  second  part  was  as  wonderful,  but  not  as 
overpowering.  The  soprano  trio,  'Lift  thine  eyes,' 
the  heavenly  chorus,  'He  watching  over  Israel,'  the 
contralto  song,  (  Oh,  rest  in  the  Lord,'  the  earthquake 
in  Mt.  Horeb,  and  the  departure  of  Elijah  through 
the  rending  sky  in  the  chariot  of  fire,  the  comforting 
choruses  bringing  the  work  to  a  close  like  the  parting 
clouds  of  a  tempestuous  day,  all  added  surprise  to  sur- 
prise and  admiration  to  admiration,  and  at  the  end 
of  the  work,  as  the  composer  moved  away,  words  of 


IF  YOU  CANNOT  ON  THE  OCEAN"        6s 


praise  greeted  his  ear  on  every  hand  like  the  sound  of 
the  shining  waves  of  the  sea.  His  genius  had  made 
a  mighty  effort  and  his  triumph  was  complete. 

"The  composition  of  'Elijah'  consumed  not  only 
the  genius,  but  the  life,  of  Mendelssohn.  After  his 
overwhelming  triumph  at  Birmingham,  and  while 
yet  receiving  the  congratulations  of  princes  and  the 
praise  of  the  whole  musical  world,  he  became  con- 
scious that  his  nervous  system  was  shattered  and  that 
his  days  of  usefulness  were  drawing  to  their  close. 

u  '  Play,  play,'  said  a  young  ^friend  to  him,  just 
after  the  performance  of  '  Elijah  '  at  Birmingham. 

uThe  young  composer  shed  tears.  'I  cannot  play; 
I  have  no  strength,'  he  said.  He  placed  his  thin 
hand  upon  his  forehead  and  exclaimed,  '  Oh,  my  head! 
my  head!'  looking  upward  to  heaven,  towards  which 
his  spirit  was  hastening.  He  died  at  Leipzig  in  1847, 
the  year  after  the  production  of  'Elijah,'  at  the  early 
age  of  thirty-eight  years." 

"Great  Composers." 


"  IF  YOU  CANNOT  ON  THE  OCEAN." 

PHILIP   PHILLIPS,  1834. 

A  favorite  hymn  of  President  Lincoln.  The 
words  are  by  Mrs.  Ellen  H.  Gates.     She  says: 

"The  lines  were  written  upon  my  slate  one  snowy 
afternoon  in  the  winter  of  i860.  I  knew,  as  I  know 
now,  that  the  poem  was  only  a  simple  little  thing,  but 
somehow  I  had  a  presentiment  that  it  had  wings." 

The  story  of  the  Tones. 


66  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"I HEARD  THE  VOICE  OF  JESUS  SAY." 

GIORNOVICHI,    1775-1804.      HYMN  BY   REV.   HORATIUS  BONAR,   1808-18S9. 

IT  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  several  great  tunes 
found  in  hymn-books  were  composed  by  erratic  men 
of  genius  whose  sanity  may  even  be  doubted,  and 
whom  charity  would  pity  as  well  as  justice  blame. 
Such  are  "Greenville"  by  Rousseau,  the  "Italian 
Hymn"  by  Giardini,  and  the  above  sympathetic 
hymn-tune  by  Giornovichi. 

Of  Giornovichi,  or  Jarnowick,  "Moore's  Cyclopae- 
dia" says: 

"The  following,  anecdotes  are  related  of  this  singu- 
lar character.  On  his  journey  to  Lyons  he  once 
announced  a  concert  at  six  francs  a  ticket,  when,  no 
company  arriving,  he  resolved  to  be  revenged  on  the 
avarice  of  the  Lyonese,  and  postponed  the  performance 
to  the  following  evening,  changing  the  price  of  the 
tickets  to  three  francs.  A  crowded  audience  was  the 
consequence;  but  at  the  moment  the  concert  was  about 
to  commence  they  were  given  to  understand  that  Jarn- 
owick had  suddenly  taken  post-horses  and  quitted  the 
town.  Another  time,  being  in  the  music  shop  of  Bail- 
leux,  Jarnowick  accidentally  broke  a  pane  of  glass. 
'  Those  who  break  windows  must  pay  for  them,'  said 
Bailleux.  'Right,'  replied  the  other;  'how  much  is 
it?'  'Thirty  sous.'  'There's  a  three-franc  piece.' 
'But  I  have  no  small  change.'  'Never  mind  that,' 
replied  Jarnowick,  'we  are  now  quits,'  and  immedi- 
ately dashed  his  cane  through  a  second  square.     He 


"  /  NERD   THEE  E  VER  Y  HO  URr 

often  quarrelled  with  the  Chevalier  de  St.  Georges, 
who  was  a  good  violinist,  b.ut  more  celebrated  swords- 
man. One  day,  in  the  heat  of  their  dispute,  Jarnowick 
boxed  the  ears  of  St.  Georges,  who  contented  himself 
with  coolly  observing  to  a  third  party  who  was  pres- 
ent, 4  yy  aime  trop  son  talent  pour  me  cbattre  avec  lid  /'  1 1 
admire  his  talents  too  much  to  fight  him.'  " 

Beautiful  melodies  broke  from  these  disturbed 
souls.  What  might  have  been  possible  to  such  genius 
had  it  been  consecrated  to  Him  whose  service  demands 
the  best  use  of  all  the  powers  for  the  spiritual  good  of 
mankind  ! 


"I  KNOW  THA  T  MY  REDEEMER  LIVETH. 

GEORGE   FREDERICK  HANDEL.   l6S4~I759       SEE  "  COME  ONTO  HIM." 


INDIAN  HYMX. 

In  de  dark  wood,  no  Indian  nigh, 
Den  me  look  heaven  and  send  up  cry, 

Upon  my  knees  so  low  ; 
Den  God  on  high  will  grant  me  grace 
And  hear  me  in  his  heavenly  place  ; 

De  Bible  tell  me  so. 

Claimed  for  Samuel  Cowdell,  a  schoolmaster  in 
Annapolis  Valley,  X.  S.,  about  1820.  It  is  popularly 
believed  to  have  had  an  earlier  date. 


11 1  NEED  THEE  EVERY  HOUR." 

REV.  R.  LOWRV,  1S26.       SEE   "SHALL  WE  GATHER  AT    THE  RIVER."      WORDS  BY  MRS. 
ANNIE  S.   HAWKS. 


68  THE  STOR  V  OF  THE  TUNES. 

ITALIAN  HYMN. 

FELICE  DE  GIARDINI.     17161796. 

Of  Giardini,  u  Moore's  Cyclopaedia"  thus  speaks: 
"The  general  capricious  character  and  splenetic 
disposition  of  Giardini  were  his  bane  through  life. 
He  spoke  well  of  few,  and  quarrelled  with  many  of  his 
most  valuable  friends.  Nothing  but  his  very  superior 
musical  talents  could  have  upheld  him  during  the 
time  he  was  in  favor  with  the  public.  Careless  of  his 
own  interest,  and  inattentive  to  all  those  means  which 
would  have  promoted  his  success  in  the  world,  he  at 
length  sank  under  misfortunes  of  his  own  creating, 
and  died  in  1796  at  Moscow,  weighed  down  by  penury 
and  distress." 


"/  WAS  A   WANDERING  SHEEP." 

J.  ZUNDEL.      1815-1882. 

John  Zundel  was  born  near  Stuttgart,  Germany, 
in  1815,  and  received  his  musical  education  in  Wur- 
temberg.  He  went  to  Russia  in  1840  to  give  an  organ 
concert,  and  while  at  St.  Petersburg  met  musical 
Americans  who  induced  him  to  visit  the  United  States. 
He  was  at  first  disappointed  in  America  and  saw  dark 
days,  but  in  1850  he  became  organist  of  Plymouth 
Church,  Brooklyn,  then  at  the  height  of  its  popularity 
and  influence. 

With  some  intermissions,  during  one  of  which  he 
was  organist  in  Dr.  Tyng's  church  in  New  York,  he 


"JESUS  IN  THE  TEMPLE." 

remained   organist  of   Plymouth    Church    for   nearly 
thirty  years.     He  died  in  Germany  in  1SS2. 


"JERUSALEM  THE  GOLDEN?' 

A.  EWING.      1830. 

The  grand  and  inspiring  old  hymn  usually  printed 
in  three  parts,  "Jerusalem  the  Golden,"  "Jerusalem 
the  Glorious,"  and  u  Brief  L,ife  is  Here  my  Portion," 
was  translated  by  Dr.  John  Mason  Neale  from  Bernard 
of  Cluny,  and  is  almost  always  sung  to  this  noble  and 
popular  tune  "  Ewing."  The  tune  is  in  many  hymn- 
books  ascribed  to  Bishop  Alexander  Ewing.  It  was 
written  by  a  nephew  of  the  bishop's,  who  bore  the  same 
name.  The  younger  Alexander  Ewing  was  born  in 
1830.  He  was  an  amateur  in  music,  and  this  tune 
seems  to  have  been  written  in  his  happiest  mood. 


"JESUS  IN  THE  TEMPLE.n 

WORDS  BY  MRS.  MARY  B.  C.  SLADF.      1S26-1SS2.      MUSIC  BY  DR.  GEORGE  F.  ROOT,  182a 

SEE  JEWELS. 

Almost  every  one  has  heard  "Jesus  in  the  Temple 
with  the  doctors  wise."  In  music-books  for  young 
people  and  the  fireside  are  to  be  found  the  initials  "  M. 
B.  C.  S."  Few  people  are  acquainted  with  the  his- 
tory of  this  lady  out  of  her  own  city  and  State,  except 
the  mere  fact  that  she  was  the  editor  of  a  school  publi- 


7o  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

cation  of  much  interest  and  worth,  called  "Good 
Times,"  and  wrote  much  for  young  people,  especially 
school  songs. 

She  died  in  Fall  River,  Mass.,  in  the  spring  of 
1882,  at  the  age  of  fifty-six.  In  her  early  life  she  was 
a  teacher.  Out  of  this  experience  came  two  successful 
books,  "The  Children's  Hour,"  and  "Exhibition 
Days."  She  was  one  of  the  editors  of  the  "Journal  of 
Education,"  edited  the  "School  Festival,"  and  con- 
ducted a  department  in  the  Philadelphia  "  School  Day 
Magazine."  She  was  a  most  prolific  writer  of  Sunday- 
school  and  day-school  songs. 

Children  were  her  delight.  She  worked  for  them 
to  the  last  under  the  shadow  of  the  sickness  that  ended 
her  life.  Her  one  ambition  was  to  prepare  the  young 
for  the  highest  duties  of  life.  Millions  of  young  peo- 
ple owe  good  influences  to  her. 


JEWELS. 

DR.   GEORGE   F.    ROOT,    182O. 

The  hymn-tunes  and  household  songs  of  Dr.  Geo. 
Frederick  Root  are  universally  known  and  sung,  as 
well  as  those  of  his  pupil  Philip  Paul  Bliss.  Who  does 
not  recall  "Hazel  Dell,"  "Music  in  the  Air,"  and 
"Rosalie,"  among  Dr.  Root's  household  songs?  and 
"Shouting  the  Battle  Cry  of  Freedom,"  which  thrilled 
the  great  mass-meeting  in  Union  Square  in  1861,  and 
two  years  later  led  the  decisive  charge  at  Chickamau- 


JEWETT.  71 

ga ;  and  "Tramp,  Tramp,  Tramp,"  which  rang 
through  the  camps  of  Chicago  almost  before  the  ink 
was  dry,  in  the  darkest  period  of  the  conflict  ?  And 
again,  who  does  not  recall  the  "  Vacant  Chair"  as  the 
home  song  of  the  war,  sung  often  amid  blinding  tears! 
u Jewels"  is  a  popular  church  bell  melody,  and 
we  heard  it  rung  from  the  chimes  of  St.  Martin's, 
IvOndon,  a  few  years  ago. 


JEWETT. 

FROM  VON  WEBER,  1786-1826.      BY  J.    P.    HOLBROOK,  l822. 

This  most  beautiful  hymn,  so  often  used  at  fune- 
rals, is  a  translation  by  J.  Borthwick. 

My  Jesus,  as  thou  wilt, 

Oh,  may  thy  will  be  mine! 
Into  thy  hand  of  love 

I  would  my  all  resign. 
Through  sorrow,  or  through  joy, 

Conduct  me  as  thine  own, 
And  help  me  still  to  say, 

My  Lord,  thy  will  be  done. 

My  Jesus,  as  thou  wilt ; 

Though  seen  through  many  a  tear, 
Let  not  my  star  of  hope 

Grow  dim  or  disappear  ; 
Since  thou  on  earth  hast  wept 

And  sorrowed  oft  alone, 
If  I  must  weep  with  thee, 

My  Lord,  thy  will  be  done. 

My  Jesus,  as  thou  wilt, 

All  shall  be  well  for  me; 
Each  changing  future  scene 

I  gladly  trust  with  thee: 


72      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Straight  to  my  home  above 

I  travel  calmly  on, 
And  sing,  in  life  or  death, 

My  Lord,  thy  will  be  done. 

The  music,  as  beautiful  as  the  words,  is  an  ar- 
rangement from  Von  Weber,  and  is  usually  called 
"Jewett."     It  was  arranged  by  J.  P.  Holbrook. 

The  last  hours  of  Carl  Maria  von  Weber  have  been 
the  subject  of  painting  and  song. 

His  last  evening  was  passed  at  the  house  of  Sir 
George  Smart,  London,  in  a  musical  company.  They 
conducted  him,  enfeebled  as  he  was  by  consumption, 
to  his  bed.  UI  must  sleep  now,"  he  said.  In  the 
morning  he  was  found  dead  in  his  room. 

Von  Weber  had  a  tender  conscience  and  a  very 
religious  nature,  and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  his 
musical  compositions  led  him  much  into  the  life 
of  the  theatre.  His  last  days  were  a  series  of  almost 
unequalled  musical  triumphs  amid  the  burning  fe- 
vers of  pulmonary  consumption.  They  were  passed 
in  London  amid  the  society  of  the  greatest  living 
composers.  His  fairyland  music,  so  much  played  on 
the  piano  and  by  the  orchestra,  was  written  amid  a 
wearing  eolith  and  hectic  fevers.  He  once  wrote  to 
his  wife  after  one  of  his  great  London  musical  tri- 
umphs: "My  best  beloved  Caroline,  through  God's 
grace  and  assistance  I  have  this  evening  met  with  the 
most  complete  success.  The  brilliancy  and  affecting 
nature  of  the  scene  of  the  triumph  are  indescribable. 
God  alone  be  thanked  for  it"  The  extract  shows  his 
devout    nature,    although   so  much   of   his    life  was 


-JO  )  Tl  rLL  Y  ONWARD  /  MO  I  r£."  73 

passed  amid  most  worldly  scenes.      He  died  in  Lon- 
don, 1S26,  aged  forty. 

"  Let  me  go  back  to  my  own  (his  family),  and  then 
God's  will  be  done."  Whether  these  words,  uttered 
in  his  last  days,  led  to  the  arrangement  of  the  music 
to  the  words,  we  cannot  say;  in  sentiment  they  belong 
to  each  other. 


"JOYFULLY,  JOYFULLY  ONWARD  I  MOVE." 

REV.    A.    D.    MERRILL,  1796-1878. 

"I  die  at  peace  with  God  and  all  mankind,"  said 
the  author  of  this  once  very  popular  hymn,  when  dy- 
ing. It  was  a  triumphant  close  of  a  triumphant  life, 
and  the  hymn  was  a  voice  of  the  life  and  prophetic  of 
the  death. 

Rev.  A.  D.  Merrill,  the  author  of  this  triumphal 
death-song,  was  born  in  Salem,  N.  H.,  1796,  and 
died  April  29,  1S7S.  He  was  a  Methodist  minister. 
He  is  still  everywhere  remembered  by  the  denomi- 
nation to  which  he  belonged  in  New  Hampshire 
and  Vermont.  He  rode  over  these  States  mingling 
in  revival  scenes  many  years.  His  picture,  which 
has  been  shown  us  by  one  of  his  sons,  a  Boston 
business  man,  bears  a  closer  resemblance  to  that  of 
Washington  than  any  other  face  that  we  ever  saw, 
and  he  was  somewhat  famous  for  this  resemblance. 
He  was  a  patriarchal-looking  man.  After  a  remark- 
able religious  experience  he  entered  upon  the  min- 
istry with    great   zeal.      His  work    was   everywhere 

4 


74      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

blessed,  and  he  has  left  an  imperishable  influence  in 
New  England.  He  composed  both  hymns  and  music. 
The  above  hymn  and  tune  once  formed  one  of  the 
greatest  favorites  of  the  New  England  Methodists.  It 
has  proved  the  dying  words  of  many  who  learned  to 
sing  it  amid  the  old  revival  scenes: 

"  Soon,  with  my  pilgrimage  ended  below, 
Home  to  the  land  of  bright  spirits  I  '11  go." 

"  Death,  with  thy  weapons  of  war  lay  me  low; 
Strike,  king  of  terrors ;  I  fear  not  the  blow. 
Jesus  has  broken  the  bars  of  the  tomb, 
Joyfully,  joyfully  haste  to  thy  home." 

The  words  were  claimed  both  for  Mr.  Merrill  and 
Rev.  Wm.  Hunter. 


JUDGMENT  HYMN. 

The  London  "Quiver"  gives  the  following  anal- 
ysis of  this  majestic  choral: 

"  'Luther's  Hymn  '  is  the  popular  name  by  which 
the  hymn  beginning 

1  Great  God,  what  do  I  see  and  hear!' 

and  its  accompanying  tune  are  known. 

11  The  hymn  is,  however,  incorrectly  called  Lu- 
ther's, and  the  tune  cannot  with  probability  be  ascribed 
to  him.  The  hymn  has  had  a  complicated  history. 
It  is  founded  upon  one  written  by  Bartholomew 
Ringwaldt,  a  village  pastor  in  Prussia.  Dr.  Collyer, 
a  dissenting  minister  in  London  at  the  beginning  of 
the  present  century,  met  with  a  translation  of  the  first 


yvU.f*«4  ***!&+  * 


1  f  *% 


KNOCKING.  75 

verse  made  by  some  unknown  person.  He  composed 
two  additional  verses;  and  this,  with  one  or  two 
changes,  is  the  hymn  which  we  possess.  Though 
generally  regarded  as  Luther's,  the  tune,  as  we  have 
indicated,  is  not  distinctly  ascertained  to  be  his.  Win- 
terfield  does  not  include  it  in  his  collection  of  '  Lu- 
ther's Spiritual  Songs,'  published  at  Leipzig  in  1840; 
and  although  another  editor  gives  it,  he  adds  a  widely 
credited  story  to  the  effect  that  Luther  picked  up  the 
melody  from  the  singing  of  a  travelling  artisan.  The 
tune  was  first  printed  in  1535,  but  it  had  served  before 
that  as  a  second  melody  to  the  hymn, 

'  Nun  freut  euch,  lieben  Christen  G'mein,' 

written  by  Luther  in  1523.  The  most,  therefore,  that 
can  be  said  for  the  tune  is  that  it  is  ascribed  to  the 
reformer  with  uncertainty.  At  one  time  it  was  fre- 
quently to  be  heard  at  musical  festivals  and  sacred 
concerts  in  our  own  country.  It  was  sung  by  Braham, 
and  Harper,  the  celebrated  trumpet  player,  accom- 
panied it  with  very  telling  fanfares  between  the  lines, 
such  as  may  be  seen  in  the  version  of  this  tune  given 
in  'Cheetham's  Psalmody.'" 


KXOCKIXG. 

GEORGE   F.   ROOT,    1820. 


Music  by  Root,  words  by  Harriet  Beecher  Stowc, 
written  for  the  "Christian  Watchman  and  Reflect- 
or," the  subject  being  Holman  Hunt's  picture. 


76  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

LAB  A IV. 

BY   LOWELL  MASON,  USUALLY  SUNG  TO   WORDS   BY   GEORGE   HEATH. 

"  My  soul,  be  on  thy  guard." 


LAKE  STREET. 

H.    P.    DANKS,  1834. 

Jones'  "Handbook  of  American  Musicians" 
gives  the  following  account  of  Mr.  Danks'  early  his- 
tory: 

"This  well-known  and  very  successful  song-com- 
poser was  born  April  6,  1834,  at  New  Haven,  Conn. 
When  he  was  eight  years  old  his  parents  removed  to 
Saratoga,  N.  Y.  At  an  early  age  he  showed  the  true 
bent  of  his  nature,  and  was  placed  under  the  care  of 
Dr.  L.  E.  Whiting,  of  Saratoga,  who  was  an  excellent 
amateur  musician  as  well  as  a  physician.  His  prog- 
ress was  so  rapid  that  he  was  soon  admitted  to  the 
choir  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  over  which 
Dr.  Whiting  presided.  Some  time  after  he  accepted 
a  similar  position  in  the  choir  of  the  M.  E.  Church. 
About  1850  his  parents  removed  again,  this  time  to 
Chicago,  where  he  was  engaged  as  bass  at  the  Clark 
Street  M.  E.  Church,  his  voice  having  changed.  Soon 
after  removing  to  Chicago  he  began  to  try  his  hand  at 
composing,  but  his  father,  who  had  no  idea  of  his 
following  music  as  a  profession,  looked  upon  all  this 
as  foolishness,  and  put  the  young  man  to  work  at  his 
own  trade,  that  of  a  builder. 


LAMPE  S  TUNES.  77 

"It  was  about  this  time  that  William  B.  Brad- 
bury, then  in  the  height  of  his  career,  held  a  conven- 
tion in  the  city,  which  young  Danks  attended.  Pluck- 
ing up  courage,  he  presented  to  that  excellent  musi- 
cian a  copy  of  his  first  hymn-tune,  with  a  request  that 
it  be  examined.  Mr.  Bradbury  was  so  much  pleased 
with  it  that  he  inserted  it  in  his  next  book,  the  'Jubi- 
lee,' under  the  name  of  '  Lake  Street.'  This  decided 
Mr.  Danks'  future  course,  and  he  devoted  himself  to 
study  and  composition." 


LAMPE  S  TUXES  FOR  THE  WESLEYS. 

JOHANN   FREDERICK   LAMPE,    1692-I75I. 

Many  of  the  popular  tunes  employed  by  the  early 
Methodists  were  composed  or  arranged  by  Frederick 
Lampe,  a  German  musician,  who  has  a  most  inter- 
esting religious  history.  The  best  account  of  Lampe 
and  his  musical  work  with  the  YVesleys  that  we  have 
seen  is  found  in  S.  W.  Christopher's  "  Poets  of  Meth- 
odism," and  we  quote  from  that  admirable  work  the 
references  to  Lampe  and  his  friendships  with  the 
early  Methodist  preachers  and  writers. 

"The  brothers  availed  themselves  of  musical  com- 
position from  any  and  every  source,  so  that  the  peo- 
ple might  be  suitably  and  largely  supplied  with  'Ser- 
vice of  Song.'  These  supplies  sometimes  came  in  a 
way  beautifully  illustrative  of  the  harmony  between 
the  divine  grace  which  they  preached  and  the  divine 


78       THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Providence  which  guided  their  steps,  their  voices,  and 
their  pens.  On  March  29,  1746,  Charles  Wesley  jots 
in  his  diary:  C"I  passed  the  afternoon  at  Mrs.  Rich's, 
where  we  caught  a  physician  by  the  ear,  through  the 
help  of  Mr.  L,ampe  and  some  of  our  sisters.  This  is 
the  true  use  of  music.'  This  little  record  gives  an 
insight  into  the  way  in  which  early  Methodists  made 
their  private  social  gatherings  subservient  at  once  to 
their  own  cultivation  in  psalmody  and  the  spiritual 
benefit  of  casual  visitors,  while  it  affords  a  clew  to 
some  of  the  first  retired  springs  of  Methodist  hymn- 
tunes. 

"Mr.  Rich  was  the  lessee  of  Covent  Garden  Thea- 
tre. His  wife,  a  beautiful  and  accomplished  actress, 
had  on  one  occasion  found  her  way  into  West  Street 
Chapel,  where  Charles  Wesley  preached.  She  was 
arrested  by  the  word,  gave  herself  to  the  pursuit  of 
divine  mercy,  and  found  the  joys  of  salvation.  Now 
came  the  conflict.  Her  husband  required  her  usual 
presence  on  the  stage;  but,  though  enduring  painful 
persecution,  she  firmly  refused  to  appear  unless  it 
were  to  bear  public  testimony  against  theatrical  amuse- 
ments. She  conquered.  Her  husband  soon  left  her 
a  rich  widow;  and  under  her  roof  her  spiritual  father 
always  found  a  welcome.  In  her  home  it  was  that 
Charles  Wesley  met  with  Frederick  Lampe,  a  Ger- 
man musician,  who  was  engaged  by  Mr.  Rich  as  a 
composer  of  dramatic  music.  For  many  years  he  had 
been  a  Deist;  but  on  reading  John  Wesley's  'Earnest 
Appeal  to  Men  of  Reason  and  Religion,'  he  too  be- 


LAMPES  TUNES.  79 

came  a  hearty  believer  in  Christ,  and  consecrated  his 
musical  talent  by  setting  tunes  to  many  of  the  hymns 
of  his  now  beloved  friends,  the  Wesleys.  The  inter- 
esting relations  between  the  members  of  this  remark- 
able  group  are  seen  in  happy  light  from  a  letter  of 
Mrs.  Rich  to  Charles  Wesley  on  November  27,  1746, 
during  her  husband's  life: 

11  'Dear  and  Rev.  Sir:  I  am  infinitely  obliged 
to  you  for  your  kind  letter.  It  gave  me  great  comfort 
and  at  a  time  I  had  much  need  of  it;  for  I  had  been 
very  ill  both  in  body  and  mind. 

u  '  I  gave  a  copy  of  the  hymn  to  Mr.  Lampe,  who, 
at  reading,  shed  some  tears  and  said  he  would  write 
to  you,  for  he  loved  you  as  well  as  if  you  were  his 
own  brother.  The  Lord  increase  it;  for  I  hope  it  is 
a  good  sign. 

11  'The  enclosed  is  a  copy  of  a  song  Mr.  Rich  has 
suno-  in  a  new  scene,  added  to  one  of  his  old  enter- 
tainments,  in  the  character  of  Harlequin  Preacher,  to 
convince  the  town  he  is  not  a  Methodist.  Oh,  pray 
for  him  that  he  may  be  a  Christian  indeed,  and  then 
he  will  be  more  concerned  about  what  he  is  called, 
and  for  me. 

"  '  Your  unworthy  daughter  in  Christ.' 

"The  hymn  which  brought  tears  to  the  musician's 
eyes  and  elicited  his  expression  of  love  for  the  man 
whose  hymns  he  helped  the  Methodists  to  sing,  was 
one  in  which  the  happy  change  in  the  gifted  tune- 


80  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

maker  is  charmingly  sung,  while  the  musician's  hopes 
of  future  harmonies  swell  into  longing  ecstasy: 

''  Thou  God  of  harmony  and  love, 
Whose  name  transports  the  saints  above 

And  lulls  the  ravished  spheres, 
On  thee  in  feeble  strains  I  call 
And  mix  my  humble  voice  with  all 

The  heavenly  choristers. 

"If  well  I  know  the  tuneful  art 
To  captivate  a  human  heart, 

The  glory,  Lord,  be  thine; 
A  servant  of  thy  blessed  will, 
I  here  devote  my  utmost  skill 

To  sound  the  praise  divine. 

11  With  Tubal's  wretched  sons  no  more 
I  prostitute  my  sacred  power 

To  please  the  fiends  beneath, 
Or  moderate  the  wanton  lay, 
Or  smooth  with  music's  hand  the  way 

To  everlasting  death. 

"  Suffice  for  this  the  season  past — 
I  come,  great  God,  to  learn  at  last 

The  lesson  of  thy  grace  ; 
Teach  me  the  new,  the  gospel  song, 
And  let  my  hand,  my  heart,  my  tongue, 

Move  only  to  thy  praise. 

"Thine  own  musician,  Lord,  inspire, 
And  let  my  consecrated  lyre 

Repeat  the  Psalmist's  part; 
His  Son  and  thine  reveal  in  me, 
And  fill  with  sacred  melody 

The  fibres  of  my  heart. 

"  So  shall  I  charm  the  listening  throng 
And  draw  the  living  stones  along 

By  Jesus'  tuneful  name; 
The  living  stones  shall  dance,  shall  rise, 
And  form  a  city  in  the  skies — 

The  New  Jerusalem. 


LAMPES  TUNES.  81 

"Oh!  might  I  with  thy  saints  aspire — 
The  meanest  of  that  dazzling  choir — 

Who  chant  thy  praise  above! 
Mixed  with  the  bright  musician-band 
May  I  a  heavenly  harper  stand, 

And  sing  the  song  of  love. 

"  What  ecstasy  of  bliss  is  there, 
While  all  the  angelic  concert  share, 

And  drink  the  floating  joys! 
What  more  than  ecstasy  when  all, 
Struck  to  the  golden  pavement,  fall 

At  Jesus'  glorious  voice  ! 

"Jesus — the  heaven  of  heaven  he  is, 
The  soul  of  harmony  and  bliss; 
And  while  on  him  we  gaze, 
And  while  his  glorious  voice  we  hear, 
Our  spirits  are  all  eye,  all  ear, 
And  silence  speaks  his  praise. 

"  Oh,  might  I  die  that  awe  to  prove, 
That  prostrate  awe  which  dares  not  move 

Before  the  great  Three-One; 
To  shout  by  turns  the  bursting  joy 
And  all  eternity  employ 

In  songs  around  the  throne  ! 

"Lampe's  tunes  became  popular.  In  a  letter  to 
his  wife  Charles  Wesley  asks,  'How  many  of  Lampe's 
tunes  can  you  play?1  and  in  an  epistle  from  New- 
castle to  his  friend  Blackwell,  the  good  London  bank- 
er, he  says,  'His  tunes  are  universally  admired  here 
among  the  musical  men,  and  have  brought  me  into 
high  favor  with  them.'  Like  many  a  pious  musi- 
cian, Lampe  must  have  found  it  difficult  to  maintain 
the  public  exercise  of  his  profession.  It  was  more 
easy  to  throw  his  heart  into  a  Methodist  hymn-tune 
than  to  entertain  the  musical  multitude.     In  October, 

The  -  _J.* 


82      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

1748,  he  was  in  Dublin,  and  his  friend  Wesley  says, 
1 1  met  at  Mr.  Lunell's  an  old  Dutch  Quaker  who 
seemed  to  have  deep  experience  of  the  things  of  God. 
At  two  Mr.  Lampe  and  his  wife  called,  and  were 
overjoyed  to  see  me.  I  cannot  yet  give  up  my  hope 
that  they  are  designed  for  better  things  than  feeding 
swine — that  is,  entertaining  the  gay  world.' 

"What  curious  associations  are  sometimes  around 
these  brothers  in  song — an  old  Dutch  Quaker  and  a 
converted  German  musician  and  tune-maker !  The 
tune-maker  realized  his  poetic  friend's  hope  at  last. 
His  work  of  'feeding  swine'  was  over;  he  got  some- 
thing better  in  the  music  way,  more  to  his  taste,  and 
that  for  ever!  With  what  a  swell  of  poetic  music 
and  heavenward  affection  Wesley  sings  at  his  upward 
flight ! 

"  T  is  done!     The  sovereign  will  \s  obeyed, 

The  soul,  by  angel-guards  conveyed, 
Has  took  its  seat  on  high; 

The  brother  of  my  choice  is  gone 

To  music  sweeter  than  his  own 
And  concerts  in  the  sky. 

"  His  spirit,  mounting  on  the  wing, 
Rejoiced  to  hear  the  convoy  sing 

While  harping  at  his  side; 
With  ease  he  caught  their  heavenly  strain, 
And  smiled  and  sung  in  mortal  pain- 
He  sung  and  smiled  and  died. 

"  Enrolled  with  that  harmonious  throng, 
He  hears  the  unutterable  song, 

The  unutterable  Name ; 
He  sees  the  Master  of  the  choir, 
He  bows  and  strikes  the  golden  lyre, 

And  hymns  the  glorious  Lamb. 


'&' 


LAMPES  TUNES.  S3 

"  He  hymns  the  glorious  Lamb  alone, 
No  more  constrained  to  make  his  moan 

In  this  sad  wilderness: 
To  toil  for  sublunary  pay, 
And  cast  his  sacred  strains  away, 

And  stoop  the  world  to  please. 

"  Redeemed  from  earth,  the  tuneful  soul, 
While  everlasting  ages  roll, 

His  triumph  shall  prolong, 
His  noble  faculties  exert, 
And  all  the  music  of  his  heart 
Shall  warble  on  his  tongue. 

"  Oh,  that  my  mournful  days  were  past! 
Oh,  that  I  might  o'ertake  at  last 

My  happy  friend  above  ! 
With  him  the  Church  triumphant  join, 
And  celebrate  in  strains  divine 
The  majesty  of  love ! 

"  Great  God  of  love !  prepare  my  heart, 
And  tune  it  now  to  bear  a  part 

In  heavenly  melody; 
I  '11  strive  to  sing  as  loud  as  they 
Who  sit  enthroned  in  brighter  day 

And  nearer  the  Most  High. 

11  Oh,  that  the  promised  time  were  come ! 
Oh,  that  we  all  were  taken  home, 

Our  Master's  joy  to  share  ! 
Draw,  Lord,  the  living,  vocal  stones, 
Jesus,  recall  thy  banished  ones, 

To  chant  thy  praises  there, 

"  Our  number  and  our  bliss  complete, 
And  summon  all  the  choir  to  meet 

Thy  glorious  throne  around  ; 
The  whole  musician-band  bring  in, 
And  give  the  signal  to  begin, 

And  let  the  trumpet  sound." 


84  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES, 


LANESBORO. 

WILLIAM   DIXON,   ABOUT   1790. 


LANSLNGBURG. 

A  SUBLIME   TUNE,   PERHAPS   BY  REV.   J.   NEANDER,    161O-1680. 


LEAD,  KIXDLY  LIGHT. 

J.  B.  DYKES,    1S23-1S76. 

DYKES'    MUSIC. 

"  Veni,  Creator." 

"Hark,  hark,  my  soul!" 

"  Come,  Holy  Ghost." 

"Holy,  holy,  holy!  Lord  God  Almighty." 

"Hollingside." 

"  The  day  is  past  and  over." 

"Ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand." 

"Thou  whose  almighty  word." 

"Jesus  lives." 

Considering  the  world-wide  fame  of  the  late 
Dr.  Dykes'  hymn-tunes,  very  little  is  known  about 
their  author.  No  memoir  of  him  has  been  written, 
no  authentic  list  or  collection  of  his  books  has  been 
compiled. 

John  Bacchus  Dykes  was  born  at  Hull,  on  the 
10th  of  March,  1823.  He  was  the  son  of  W.  H.  Dykes, 
and  grandson  of  Rev.  Thos.  Dykes,  for  many  years  in- 


LEAD,  KINDL  Y  LIGHT.  85 

cumbent  of  St.  John's  Church,  Hull.  During  child- 
hood John  Dykes  showed  a  remarkable  talent  for 
music.     His  sister,  Miss  Dykes,  write  to  us: 

"We  were  very  nearly  the  same  age,  and  I  was 
always  his  companion  in  early  life.  Music  seemed  to 
come  to  him  as  by  instinct.  He  really  needed  but 
little  instruction,  but  could  catch  any  air  or  play  by 
ear  long  before  he  was  able  to  play  from  note.  He 
used  to  practise  on  the  organ  as  a  little  child,  and 
played  at  grandfather's  church  during  service  when  he 
was  ten  years  old." 

One  of  the  greatest  punishments  that  could  be 
inflicted  on  him  was  to  debar  him  from  his  favorite 
pastime  of  organ-playing.  In  1840,  when  John  was 
seventeen  years  of  age,  his  father  went  to  live  at 
Wakefield,  and  here  the  son  entered  the  West  Riding 
Proprietary  School,  where  he  remained  three  years 
and  was  frequently  a  prizeman.  In  October,  1843,  ne 
matriculated  at  St.  Katharine's  Hall,  Cambridge,  and 
a  few  weeks  after  was  elected  Yorkshire  Scholar  of  his 
College.  Previous  to  his  arrival  in  Cambridge  a  small 
musical  society  had  been  formed  at  St.  Peter's  College, 
and  this  was  now  merged  in  a  larger  one,  called  the 
Cambridge  University  Musical  Society,  of  which  Mr. 
Dykes  and  Sir  William  Thompson,  F.  R.  S.,  were 
leading  members.  Air.  Dykes  was  unanimously  cho- 
sen conductor  of.  the  society,  and  under  his  manage- 
ment it  greatly  prospered.  Mr.  Dykes'  musical  skill 
made  him  a  popular  man  with  Town  and  Gown,  and 
it  speaks  well  for  his  staunchness  that  in  spite  of  end- 


86      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

less  social  engagements  he  did  not  let  his  reading 
suffer.  By  husbanding  his  time  he  managed  to  ac- 
complish an  extraordinary  amount  of  study. 

In  January,  1847,  Mr.  Dykes  was  ordained  deacon 
and  licensed  to  the  curacy  of  Malton.  In  1849  he  was 
appointed  by  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Durham  to  be 
Minor  Canon  and  Precentor.  This  was  owing  to  his 
musical  skill  and  his  success  as  conductor  at  Cam- 
bridge. Mr.  Dykes  found  matters  at  Durham  in  a 
neglected  state.  A  collection  of  chants  was  in  use 
which  paid  no  regard  to  the  character  of  the  Psalms, 
and  led  to  jubilant  words  being  sung  to  plaintive  music, 
and  vice  versa.  His  cathedral  duties  were  not  heavy, 
and  he  had  leisure  to  devote  himself  to  the  Precentor- 
shif),  which  was  naturally  a  congenial  task.  He  began 
his  more  important  musical  works  by  contributing  an 
anthem,  "  These  are  they  which  came  out  of  great 
tribulation,"  to  Sir  Frederick  Ouseley's  collection  of 
anthems  for  special  occasions.  And  for  the  cathedral 
use  he  wrote  a  burial  service  and  other  music.  This 
also  was  a  very  productive  period  in  regard  to  hymn- 
tunes. 

In  1861  the  University  of  Durham  conferred  the 
degree  of  Mus.  Doc.  upon  Mr.  Dykes,  in  recognition 
of  his  talent.  In  1862  he  was  presented  to  the  vicar- 
age of  St.  Oswald's,  a  parish  church  in  Durham. 
Here  for  fourteen  years  he  discharged  his  duties  with 
an  earnestness  and  love  that  won  for  him  the  affection 
of  many  and  the  respect  of  all  who  came  into  contact 
with  him.    He  died  at  St.  Leonard's  on  Jan.  20,  1876. 


LEAD,  KINDL  Y  LIGHT.  87 

Mr.  Dykes'  character,  as  all  who  knew  him  testify, 
was  particularly  sweet  and  attractive.  Miss  Dykes 
writes  to  us: 

11  His  nature  was  bright,  sunny,  and  joyous,  and  he 
had  a  wonderful  power  of  making  friendships.  He 
was  a  most  amusing  and  delightful  companion,  and 
one  whom  all  loved  and  courted.  His  great  charm 
was,  however,  his  deep  and  sincere  religion.  This 
seemed  to  be  the  hidden  spring  of  all  his  outer  life," 

Dr.  Dykes'  sympathies  were  wide  and  his  human 
hope  strong.  He  was  always  gratified  to  learn  how  all 
Christian  bodies  used  his  tunes,  and  he  heard  ever 
with  interest  of  the  festivals  of  the  Nonconformist 
church  choirs  of  Durham  and  Northumberland  which 
were  conducted  for  so  many  years  at  Newcastle  by 
James  Hall.  In  the  scrap-book  which  his  son,  the 
Rev.  E.  H.  Dykes,  has  lent  us,  we  find  an  address  de- 
livered by  Dr.  Dykes  at  one  of  the  Durham  Church 
Institute  Readings,  in  which  he  discourses  as  follows 
on  the  popular  cultivation  of  music: 

14 1  earnestly  hope  that  many  of  our  young  men 
will  avail  themselves  of  the  opportunity  thus  offered 
them  of  obtaining,  at  a  very  reasonable  cost,  some 
practical  knowledge  of  the  delightful  art  of  music.  It 
always  appears  to  me  such  a  pity  that  an  intelligent 
acquaintance  even  with  the  rudiments  of  music  is  so 
rare  in  this  country.  How  very  few,  for  instance,  are 
able  to  sing  correctly  at  sight  even  the  simplest  com- 
positions. Look  at  our  parochial  choirs.  Is  there  a 
clergyman  who  does  not  experience  the  difficulty  of 


88  THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

finding  in  his  parish  men  or  boys  capable  of  taking 
promptly  and  accurately  the  four  separate  parts  even  of 
the  commonest  chants  or  psalm-tunes,  to  say  nothing 
of  more  difficult  music  ?  How  often  is  there  no  alto 
to  be  obtained,  or  no  tenor  or  no  bass;  how  frequently 
the  boys  are  unable  to  read  a  note  of  music,  and  have 
to  sing  by  ear. ' ' 

Dr.  Dykes  went  on  to  vindicate  the  musicality  of 
England  in  comparison  with  that  of  Germany,  Italy, 
and  France  ;  and  then  followed  some  wise  words  on 
part-singing: 

' '  There  is  certainly  no  more  pleasant,  rational,  in- 
nocent, social,  and  I  may  add  healthy  indoor  exercise 
and  amusement  than  part-singing.  And  to  those  who 
master  the  preliminary  difficulties  I  need  hardly  say 
what  a  well-ni^h  exhaustless  store  of  delightful  music 
they  will  find  awaiting  their  study  and  practice  and 
enjoyment.  I  would  specially  instance  our  English 
glees,  a  class  of  compositions  taking  an  intermediate 
position  between  the  modern  German  part-song  and 
the  old  and  more  scientific  Italian  madrigal,  and  par- 
taking of  the  merits  of  both.  Many  of  these  composi- 
tions are  of  exceeding  beauty. n 

Dr.  Dykes  concluded  his  address  by  hoping  that  the 
singing-class  would  indirectly  contribute  to  the  im- 
provement of  the  choral  worship  of  the  churches: 

"  Public  worship,  our  sacrifice  of  praise  and  thanks- 
giving, is  a  sacred  exercise  which  should  engage  the 
activities  not  of  our  ears  only,  but  of  our  whole  being, 
body,  soul,  and  spirit;  it  is  an  oblation  of  heart  and 


LEAD,  KINDLY  LIGHT.  89 

voice  to  God;  an  offering  of  the  best  of  what  we  are 
and  what  we  have  to  him,  onr  ever  blessed  Creator, 
Redeemer,  and  Sanctifier.  And  if  people  love  an 
attractive  service  and  ceremonial,  we  must  always 
remember  that  it  is  God  Almighty  who  first  taught 
them  to  love  it  and  encouraged  us  to  employ  it." 

We  have  already  remarked  that  no  complete 
collection  of  Dr.  Dykes'  tunes  has  been  published. 
The  task  would  indeed  be  difficult.  Dr.  Dykes  was 
in  the  habit  of  composing  tunes  here,  there,  and  every- 
where, and  would  often  make  a  present  of  the  manu- 
script to  a  friend,  keeping  no  copy.  The  number  of 
tunes  composed  by  him  must  be  very  great.  Dr. 
Dykes'  nephew,  Mr.  Levett,  of  Hull,  writes: 

"A  clerical  admirer  of  the  revered  composer,  with 
whom  I  have  long  kept  up  a  correspondence  on  the 
subject  of  hymn-tunes,  has  counted  those  written  by 
Dr.  Dykes  (both  in  print  and  manuscript)  which  are 
in  his  possession,  and  his  musical  library  is  extensive. 
He  found  the  total  number  of  tunes  to  be  242,  inclu- 
ding the  carols  which  my  uncle  wrote  for  the  Bramley 
and  Stainer  collection.  But  this  gentleman  had  not 
then  got  all  the  discovered  tunes,  and  a  good  many 
more  have  turned  up  since  the  time  he  made  the  col- 
lection. I  discovered  two  fresh  ones  only  a  few  weeks 
ago.  I  know  of  others  which  I  have  not  yet  been 
able  to  procure,  but  which  I  hope  to  get  eventually." 

With  reference  to  Dr.  Dykes'  habits  of  composi- 
tion Miss  Dykes  writes  to  us: 

"Many  of  his  best  tunes  seemed  to  come  to  the 


90       THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

words  to  which  they  were  composed  as  impromptu 
suggestions,  and  for  this  reason  he  always  much  pre- 
ferred keeping  them  for  the  hymns  to  which  they 
were  originally  written.  He  wrote  his  tunes  quite 
independently  of  the  piano,  often  in  solitary  walks  or 
in  a  railway  train." 

His  son,  the  Rev.  E.  H.  Dykes,  informs  us  that 
his  father  "used  to  write  his  tunes  mostly  in  his 
study,  going  to  the  piano  to  satisfy  himself  about 
some  of  the  harmonies.  He  often  used  railway  trav- 
elling, too,  for  writing  his  tunes,  though  the  only 
tune  I  know  for  a  fact  that  he  wrote  in  a  train  was 
one  to  'Come,  Holy  Ghost,'  called  '  Veni,  Creator'  in 
a  book  edited  by  Mr.  John  Grey.  The  tune  to  '  Hark, 
hark,  my  soul!'  was  composed  as  he  was  going  to 
Skiddaw.  As  children  we  often  used  to  sing  over 
some  of  his  new  tunes  on  Sunday  evening;  nor  did  we 
fail  to  criticise  them,  and  not  infrequently  some  of  our 
suggestions  were  accepted.  He  used  to  say  that  he 
always  made  a  practice  of  offering  up  some  short 
prayer  before  he  wrote  anything.  With  regard  to 
congregational  singing,  he  was  a  great  advocate  of  it, 
and  often  used  to  ur^e  it  in  his  sermons." 

In  mentioning  Dr.  Dykes'  tunes  we  speak  natural- 
ly of  the  hymns  to  which  they  are  set,  rather  than  of 
their  names.  This  is  what  he  most  desired,  that  they 
should  never  be  separated  from  the  words  which  in- 
spired them.  In  the  last  edition  of  "  Hymns  Ancient 
and  Modern"  there  are  no  less  than  fifty-four  of  his 
tunes,   and    the  student  of  psalmody  who  takes  the 


LEAD,  KINDL  V  LIGHT.  91 

trouble  to  turn  up  these  tunes  and  play  them  over 
will  find  the  occupation  a  profitable  one.  No  exer- 
cise can  better  impress  us  with  the  change  which  has 
come  over  the  hymn-tune  of  late  years — a  change  of 
which  Dr.  Dykes,  more  than  any  one  else,  may  be 
called  the  author.  The  old  tunes,  of  which  our  books 
are  full,  are  solid,  regular,  and  cast  in  a  uniform 
mould.  We  apply  them  freely  to  hymns  of  corre- 
sponding sentiment  in  the  same  metre,  and  we  find 
that  they  have  a  wonderful  capacity  for  suiting  many 
hymns.  By  no  means  have  we  done  with  these  tunes. 
We  shall  always  sing  them,  and  admire  their  stately 
form  and  their  strength  of  structure,  which  time  does 
not  affect.  But  we  have  begun  to  unite  with  them 
tunes  in  which  the  attempt  is  made  to  embody  and 
express  the  sentiment  of  one  particular  hymn.  Such 
tunes  it  was  that  Dr.  Dykes  took  the  lead  in  writing, 
and  the  novelty  of  a  close  sympathy  between  music 
and  verse  has  proved  a  welcome  addition  to  the  re- 
sources of  psalmody.  For  example,  we  all  feel  how 
truly  the  tune  "  Hollingside  "  breathes  the  spirit  of 
" Jesus,  lover  of  my  soul;"  how  full  of  repose  and 
calm  is  "The  day  is  past  and  over;"  how  weighted 
with  grief  is  "Oh,  come  and  mourn  with  me  a 
while;"  how  strongly  descriptive  is  "Fierce  raged 
the  tempest;"  how  solemn  are  the  wailing  minor 
chords  of  "  Day  of  wrath,  O  day  of  mourning!" 

Dr.  Dykes  brought  the  fruit  of  his  wide  reading  of 
modern  music  to  bear  upon  all  he  wrote.  He  must 
have  been  an  especial  student  of  Spohr,  for  his  com- 


92  THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

positions  bear  traces  of  the  manner  of- that  writer. 
Smoothness  is  a  great  characteristic  of  Dykes'  tunes; 
he  moves  the  parts  as  little  as  possible,  and  he  suc- 
ceeds best  with  quiet  or  plaintive  words.  His  setting 
of  Dean  Alford's  "Ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand" 
is  perhaps  the  most  joyful  and  rousing  of  his  tunes; 
but  here,  as  in  "Thou  whose  almighty  word"  and 
"Jesus  lives,"  we  feel  that  he  has  been  surpassed  in 
strength  and  boldness  by  contemporaries  like  Sulli- 
van, Smart,  and  Guantlett.  To  speak  more  particu- 
larly of  his  style,  we  must  be  for  a  moment  technical, 
and  remark  on  his  use  of  related  minor  modes,  his 
fondness  for  passing  notes  and  second  inversions,  and 
for  harmonic  sequences.  In  almost  every  tune  there 
is  some  progression  that  strikes  the  ear  and  is  remem- 
bered as  congenial  to  the  hymn.  This  free  employ- 
ment of  the  licenses  of  modern  harmony  gives  a 
warmth  and  color  to  his  tunes  which  is  the  true  secret 
of  their  popularity.  Generally,  but  not  always,  Dr. 
Dykes  kept  in  view  the  singing  powers  of  the  congre- 
gation. All  his  tunes  presuppose  an  organ  accom- 
paniment, without  which  their  progressions  must  be 
ineffective.  He  had,  however,  a  very  good  idea  of 
how  what  he  wrote  would  sing,  and  was  a  perfect 
master  of  vocal  effects,  which  are  entirely  distinct  from 
instrumental.  His  tunes  generally  may  be  recom- 
mended to  the  student  as  good  models  of  form  and  de- 
sign; in  this  respect  "Hollingside"  ("Jesus,  lover  of  my 
soul  ")  and  "Sanctuary  "  ("  Hark  !  the  sound  of  holy 
voices")  arc  prominent.      It  will   be  noted  how  he 


LEAD,  KINDL  Y  LIGHT.  93 

carries  his  harmonic  idea  through  a  whole  phrase,  and 
not  merely  from  chord  to  chord,  as  did  the  old  tunes. 
A  funeral  hymn,  "Now  the  laborer's  task  is  o'er," 
he  has  beautifully  set;  and  his  setting  of  "  In  the  hour 
of  trial,"  in  "The  Hymnary,"  is  in  the  same  strain. 
Dr.  Dykes  was  not  always  successful.  His  tune  to 
"Art  thou  weary?"  has  been  entirely  set  aside  by 
the  simple  melody  of  Sir  Henry  Baker,  and  his  tunes 
for  "The  pilgrims  of  the  night,"  and  "O  paradise!" 
have  not  carried  all  before  them.  The  latter  two  are, 
indeed,  somewhat  weak.  He  was  fond  of  setting 
Iambic  hymns  in  triple  time,  beginning  on  the  first 
of  the  bar,  an  arrangement  which  upsets  the  accent 
of  the  first  foot  of  every  line.  The  prayer  for  those  at 
sea,  "Eternal  Father,  strong  to  save,"  is  deservedly 
one  of  the  most  popular  of  Dr,  Dykes'  tunes;  in  this 
case  we  must  give  due  credit  to  the  words,  which 
embody  a  truly  English  feeling,  which  had  not  before 
found  expression  in  our  hymnody. 

Looking  back  on  the  labors  of  Dr.  Dykes,  we  can- 
not but  rejoice  in  them  and  give  thanks  for  the  church 
musician,  as  we  have  always  done  for  the  church 
hymnodist.  The  extent  to  which  Dr.  Dykes  had  by 
his  tunes  touched  the  heart  of  the  nation  was  shown 
by  the  raising  of  over  ^10,000  as  a  memorial  of  him 
at  his  death.  This  sum,  it  is  said,  has  really  left  his 
family  in  more  comfortable  circumstances  than  they 
were  in  during  his  lifetime. 

From  "Tonic  Sol  Fa  Magazine,"  London,  1887. 


94  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 


LEONI. 


A  HEBREW  MELODY. 


An  ancient  Hebrew  melody  that  Rossini  doubt- 
less had  in  mind  when  he  wrote  the  famous  "  Prayer  " 
of  "Moses  in  Egypt."  It  is  still  sung  in  England, 
and  always  in  Mr.  Spurgeon's  Tabernacle  on  Hebrew 
Day. 

The  srtory  of  its  haunting  the  mind  of  Olivers  (see 
"Story  of  the  Hymns"),  and  of  his  writing  to  it  the 
majestic  hymn,  "The  God  of  Abrah'm  Praise,"  is 
thus  told  in  a  recent  English  publication.  We  have 
alluded  to  the  hymn  elsewhere,  but  here,  following 
the  work  from  which  we  quote,  we  give  the  words 
entire. 

"The  God  of  Abrah'm  praise, 

Who  reigns  enthroned  above, 
Ancient  of  everlasting  days,  • 

And  God  of  love : 
Jehovah — great  I  Am — 

By  earth  and  heaven  confessed ; 
I  bow  and  bless  the  sacred  name, 

For  ever  blest. 

"The  God  of  Abrah'm  praise, 

At  whose  supreme  command 
From  earth  I  rise,  and  seek  the  joys 

At  his  right  hand  : 
I  all  on  earth  forsake, 

Its  wisdom,  fame,  and  power, 
And  him  my  only  portion  make, 

My  shield  and  tower. 


LEON/.  95 


"  Tho  God  of  Abrah'm  praise, 

Whose  all-sufficient  grace 
Shall  guide  me  all  my  happy  days 

In  all  my  ways  : 
He  calls  a  worm  his  friend, 

He  calls  himself  my  God! 
And  he  shall  save  me  to  the  end, 

Through  Jesus'  blood. 

"  He  by  himself  hath  sworn  ; 

I  on  his  oath  depend; 
I  shall,  on  eagle's  wings  upborne, 

To  heaven  ascend : 
I  shall  behold"  his  face, 

I  shall  his  power  adore, 
And  sing  the  wonders  of  his  grace 

For  evermore. 

"Though  nature's  strength  decay 

And  earth  and  hell  withstand, 
To  Canaan's  bounds  I  urge  my  way 

At  his  command : 
The  watery  deep  I  pass 

With  Jesus  in  my  view, 
And  through  the  howling  wilderness 

My  way  pursue. 

"The  goodly  land  I  see, 

With  peace  and  plenty  blessed; 
A  land  of  sacred  liberty 

And  endless  rest: 
There  milk  and  honey  flow 

And  oil  and  wine  abound  ; 
And  trees  of  life  for  ever  grow, 

With  mercy  crowned. 

"There  dwells  the  Lord  our  King, 
The  Lord  our  righteousness, 
Triumphant  o'er  the  world  and  sin, 
The  Prince  of  Peace: 


96  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

On  Zion's  sacred  heights 
His  kingdom  still  maintains  ; 

And  glorious,  with  his  saints  in  light, 
For  ever  reigns. 

"  He  keeps  his  own  secure, 

He  guards  them  by  his  side, 
Arrays  in  garments  white  and  pure 

His  spotless  bride: 
With  streams  of  sacred  bliss, 

With  groves  of  living  joys, 
With  all  the  fruits  of  paradise 

He  still  supplies. 


"Before  the  great  Three-One 

They  all  exulting  stand, 
And  tell  the  wonders  he  hath  done 

Through  all  their  land  : 
The  listening  spheres  attend, 

And  swell  the  growing  fame, 
And  sing,  in  songs  which  never  end, 

The  wondrous  Name. 

"The  God  who  reigns  on  high 
The  great  archangels  sing, 
And  '  Holy,  holy,  holy,'  cry, 

'Almighty  King! 
Who  was,  and  is,  the  same, 
And  evermore  shall  be; 
Jehovah,  Father,  great  I  Am, 
We  worship  thee. 

"Before  the  Saviour's  face 

The  ransomed  nations  bow; 
O'erwhelmed  at  his  almighty  grace, 

For  ever  new : 
He  shows  his  prints  of  love, 

They  kindle  to  a  flame, 
And  sound  through  all  the  worlds  above 

The  slaughtered  Lamb. 


LEONI.  97 

"The  whole  triumphant  host 

Give  thanks  to  God  on  high; 
'  Hail,  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,' 

They  ever  cry  : 
Hail,  Abrah'm's  God — and  mine! 

I  join  the  heavenly  lays, 
All  might  and  majesty  are  thine, 

And  endless  praise." 

It  is  said  that  while  Olivers  was  visiting  his  friend 
John  Bakewell,  the  hymnist,  he  went  to  a  Jewish 
synagogue,  and  was  so  deeply  impressed  with  an  old 
Hebrew  melody  sung  by  Dr.  Leoni  that  on  his  return 
he  produced  the  stanzas  which  are  metrically  adapted 
to  the  admired  tune.  A  distinguished  hymn-writer 
may  be  taken  as  a  critic  of  authority.  "There  is  not 
in  our  language,"  says  James  Montgomery,  "a  lyric 
of  more  majestic  style,  more  elevated  thought,  or 
more  glorious  imagery;  its  structure,  indeed,  is  unat- 
tractive; and,  on  account  of  the  short  lines,  occasion- 
ally uncouth;  but,  like  a  stately  pile  of  architecture, 
severe  and  simple  in  design,  it  strikes  less  on  the  first 
view  than  after  deliberate  examination,  when  its  pro- 
portions become  more  graceful,  its  dimensions  ex- 
pand, and  the  mind  itself  grows  greater  in  contem- 
plating it.  The  man  who  wrote  this  hymn  must 
haze  had  the  finest  ear  imaginable;  for  on  account 
c^  the  peculiarity  of  the  measure,  none  but  a  person 
of  equal  musical  and  poetic  taste  could  have  pro- 
duced the  harmony  perceptible  in  the  verse." 

Olivers  lived  to  see  the  issue  of  at  least  thirty 
editions  of  his  hymn.  But  he  did  not  live  to  hear  all 
the  soul-music  which  his  hvmu  has  awakened  amonir 

The  su>r>  >r  the  Tui  5 


9S      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

the  spiritual  children  of  faithful  Abraham  on  their  way 
from  every  scene  of  mortal  life  to  their  home  beyond 
the  flood.  Holy  women  and  consecrated  men  have 
made  it  their  song  in  the  land  of  their  pilgrimage; 
and  portions  of  it  have  formed  their  final  utterances 
of  triumph  in  crossing  the  border  of  their  inheritance. 
The  saintly  wife  of  that  saintly  man  who,  in  his 
simple  faith,  came  so  near  to  Abraham  himself,  Wil- 
liam Carvosso,  of  Ponsanooth,  in  Cornwall,  was  called 
for  the  last  eighteen  months  of  her  life  to  extreme 
suffering.  But  her  consolations  abounded ;  so  that 
her  sweet  singing  was  not  silenced  even  by  strong 
pain.  Often  were  parts  of  her  favorite  hymn  heard 
ringing  through  the  house.     Now  it  would  be, 

"  The  God  of  Abrah'm  praise, 

At  whose  supreme  command 
From  earth  I  rise,  and  seek  the  joys 

At  his  right  hand  : 
I  all  on  earth  forsake, 

Its  wisdom,  fame,  and  power, 
And  him  my  only  portion  make, 

My  shield  and  tower." 

And  then  frequently, 

"  He  by  himself  hath  sworn; 
I  on  his  oath  depend ; 
I  shall,  on  eagle's  wings  upborne, 
To  heaven  ascend." 

Depending  on  that  divine  oath,  she  herself  passed  into 
heaven. 

In  a  little  snug  retreat  under  a  hillside,  near  Cal- 
lington,  in  the  west  of  England,  the  Methodist  preach- 
ers used  to  be  entertained  with  a  motherly  affection 


LEON/.  99 

by  the  aged  wife  of  Mr.  Geake,  a  veteran  Methodist 
leader  and  local  preacher.  When  the  good  woman 
was  young  she  was  always  ready,  in  the  warmth  of 
her  zeal,  to  go  from  place  to  place  assisting  the  preach- 
ers by  the  use  of  her  fine  voice  in  singing.  And  now, 
when  beyond  eighty,  she  would  say,  "My  voice  is 
weak,  but  I  can  sing  still;  my  heart  sings;  and  often 
of  an  evening  I  lift  up  my  song." 

"Can't  you  give  me  a  morning  song?"  said  a 
friend  one  day. 

"Yes,  I  think  lean." 

And  then,  in  a  thin,  tremulous  tone,  she  sang  her 
favorite  hymn,  which  she  said  Dr.  Adam  Clarke  had 
taught  her  while  a  girl,  when  he  used  to  preach  in 
her  father's  parlor.     It  was, 

"  The  God  of  Abrah'm  praise." 

The  Rev.  William  Worth,  when  about  to  finish  his 
Methodist  itineracy,  had  been  lying  for  some  time 
in  silence,  as  though  he  were  listening  attentively. 
At  length  he  said,  "Hark,  do  you  hear  that  sweet 
music?"  "Yes,"  he  added,  speaking  to  the  unseen, 
"precious  Saviour,  thou  art  mine."  Then,  breaking 
forth  into  praise,  he  exclaimed, 

"  I  shall  behold  his  face, 
I  shall  his  power  adore, 
And  sing  the  wonders  of  his  grace 
For  evermore." 

"Hark!"  he  cried  again.  "Hallelujah!  glory! 
glory  for  ever  and  ever!" 


ioo  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

It  was  his  last  shout  as  he  passed  up  to  "behold 
His  face." 

The  great  Methodist  theologian,  too,  Richard  Wat- 
son, after  a  life  of  holy  familiarity  with  "the  cheru- 
bim of  glory  overshadowing  the  mercy-seat,"  came  to 
the  end  frequently  giving  out  his  elect  song, 
"  I  shall  behold  His  face." 

u  When,"  said  he,  "shall  I  leave  this  tenement  of 
clay  for  the  wide  expanse?  When  shall  the  nobler 
joys  open,  and  I  see  my  God?"  And  then  the  song 
broke  forth  afresh: 

"  I  shall  behold  his  face, 
I  shall  his  power  adore, 
And  sing  the  wonders  of  his  grace 
For  evermore." 

From   Rev.  S.  W.  Christopher's  "  Poets  of  Methodism,"  London :  Haughton 
&Co. 


"LET  THE  LOWER  LIGHTS  BE  BURNING." 

P.    P.   BLISS,    I 838-1876. 

On  a  dark,  stormy  night,  when  the  waves  rolled 
like  mountains  and  not  a  star  was  to  be  seen,  a  boat, 
rocking  and  plunging,  neared  the  Cleveland  harbor. 

"Are  you  sure  this  is  Cleveland?"  asked  the  cap- 
tain, seeing  only  one  light  from  the  lighthouse. 

"Quite  sure,  sir,"  replied  the  pilot. 

"Where  are  the  lower  lights?" 

"  Gone  out,  sir." 

"  Can  you  make  the  harbor?" 

"  We  must,  or  perish,  sir!" 


"LIFE  IS  WEARY,  SA  VIOUR,  TAKE  ME."  101 

And  with  a  strong  hand  and  a  brave  heart,  the  old 
pilot  turned  the  wheel.  But  alas,  in  the  darkness  he 
missed  the  channel,  and  with  a  crash  upon  the  rocks 
the  boat  was  shivered  and  many  a  life  lost  in  a  watery 
erave.  Brethren,  the  Master  will  take  care  of  the 
great  lighthouse:  let  us  keep  the  lower  lights  burning: 

D.    L.   MOODY. 

This  event  led  to  the  composition  of  the  hymn: 

Brightly  beams  our  Father's  mercy 

From  his  Lighthouse  evermore; 
But  to  us  he  gives  the  keeping 

Of  the  lights  along  the  shore. 
Chorus. 
Let  the  lower  lights  be  burning! 

Send  a  gleam  across  the  wave ; 
Some  poor  fainting,  struggling  seaman 

You  may  rescue,  you  may  save. 


"LIFE  IS  WEARY,  SAVIOUR,  TAKE  ME." 

GEORGE   NEUMARCK,    l62I-l68l. 

There  is  a  remarkable  history,  one  which  sig- 
nally illustrates  the  special  providence  of  God,  at- 
tached to  a  beautiful  German  hymn.  About  1650 
George  Neumarck,  a  writer  of  hymns  and  a  musi- 
cian of  Hamburg,  fell  sick.  He  had  picked  up  a 
scanty  living  by  playing  on  the  violoncello  in  the 
public  streets,  a  custom  not  then  unusual  with  poor 
students.  The  sickness  prevented  Neumarck  from 
going  his  usual  rounds.  He  was  soon  reduced  to 
such  poverty  as  compelled  him  to  part  with  his  in- 
strument, his  only  means  of  support. 


102  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

He  pawned  the  violoncello  to  a  Jew,  who  lent  him 
on  it  a  sum  much  below  its  value.  The  loan  was  to 
run  two  weeks,  and  if  the  instrument  should  not  be 
redeemed  within  that  time,  it  would  be  forfeited.  As 
Neumarck  handed  it  to  the  Jew,  he  looked  at  it  lov- 
ingly, and  with  tears  in  his  eyes  said, 

"  You  don't  know  how  hard  it  is  to  part  with  it. 
For  ten  years  it  has  been  my  companion.  If  I  had 
nothing  else,  I  had  it,  and  it  spoke  to  me  and  sang 
back  to  me.  Of  all  sad  hearts  that  have  left  your 
door,  there  has  been  none  so  sad  as  mine.  Let  me 
play  one  more  tune  upon  it?" 

Gently  taking  hold  of  the  instrument,  he  played 
so  exquisitely  that  even  the  Jew  listened  in  spite  of 
himself.  A  few  more  strains,  and  he  sang  to  his  own 
melody  the  hymn  written  by  himself, 

"  Life  is  weary,  Saviour,  take  me." 

Suddenly  he  changed  the  key,  and  his  face  lighted 
up  with  a  smile  as  he  sang, 

"  Yet  who  knows  the  cross  is  precious." 

Laying  down  the  instrument,  he  said,  "As  God 
will;  I  am  still,"  rushed  from  the  pawnbroker's  shop, 
and  stumbled  against  a  stranger  who  had  been  listen- 
ing at  the  door. 

"  Could  you  tell  me,"  asked  the  stranger,  "where 
I  could  obtain  a  copy  of  that  song?  I  would  will- 
ingly give  a  florin  for  it." 

"My  good  friend,"  replied  Neumarck,  "I  will 
give  it  to  you  without  the  florin." 

The  stranger  was  the  valet  of  the  SwedisTi  am- 


MAGNIFICAT  ANIMA  ME  A  DOMINUM.     103 

bassador,  and  to  him  the  singer  told  his  sad  story. 
He  told  his  master,  who,  becoming  interested  in  Neu- 
marck,  appointed  him  his  private  secretary.  With 
his  first  money  he  redeemed  his  instrument,  and  call- 
ing in  his  landlady  and  friends,  sang  his  own  sweet 
hymn,  of  which  this  is  a  part: 

To  let  God  rule  who  's  but  contented, 

And  humbly  in  him  hopeth  still, 
Shall  marvellously  be  prevented 

In  every  sorrow,  every  ill. 
Who  leaneth  on  God's  mighty  hand, 
He  hath  not  built  his  house  on  sand. 

For  what  is  all  our  heavy  yearning, 

And  wherefore  make  we  such  ado  ? 
What  prospers  it  that  every  morning 

We  o'er  our  sorrow  wail  anew? 
Whereunto  works  our  clamor  vain 
But  to  increase  our  grief  and  pain? 

Then  must  we  for  a  time  content  us, 

And  for  a  little  while  be  still, 
Await  what  through  God's  grace  is  sent  us, 

What  worketh  his  omniscient  will. 
God,  who  our  helper  deigns  to  be, 
Well  knoweth  our  necessity. 


"LIFT  THINE  EYES." 

FELIX   MENDELSSOHN   BARTHOLDY,    1809-1847. 

See  "  If  with  all  your  hearts." 


MAGNIFICAT  ANIMA  ME  A   DOMINUAf. 

Luke  1:46.     "And   Mary  said,    *  My  soul  doth 
magnify  the  Lord,'  "  etc. 

An  ancient  chant  of  the  Latin  Church. 


104  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

MAJESTY. 

WILLIAM   BILLINGS,    1764-1800.      WORDS  BY  THOMAS  STERNHOLD,   1480-I549. 

"  William  Billings,  of  Boston,  a  natural  genius 
with  no  education,"  is  the  brief  biography  which  we 
have  already  quoted  from  one  work  on  music.  If 
Billings  lacked  education,  he  did  not  lack  enthusi- 
asm. He  felt  it  in  his  very  boyhood  and  his  work 
has  outlived  his  critics',  art  perishes,  but  genius  is 
immortal. 

Billings  was  the  pioneer  in  American  music.  Dur- 
ing one  hundred  and  fifty  years  of  New  England  his- 
tory, music  scarcely  had  a  voice;  then  came  Billings. 
He  was  born  in  Boston,  October  7,  1746.  He  was  the 
author  of  the  tunes  "  Majesty  "  and  "  Christ  the  Lord 
is  risen  indeed,"  but  is  best  known  by  "Rock  of 
Ages."  He  was  influential  in  forming  the  Stoughton 
Choral  Society,  which  has  celebrated  its  hundredth 
anniversary,  and  was  in  one  sense  the  parent  of  the 
Boston  Handel  and  Haydn  Society.  Moore,  in  his 
"Cyclopaedia  of  Music,"  gives  some  interesting  inci- 
dents of  Billings'  history. 

"His  first  publication  was  exceedingly  deficient 
in  all  the  constituent  requisites  of  good  melody  as 
well  as  good  harmony,  and  particularly  as  to  accent. 
It  will  not  bear  criticism,  and  it  may  amuse  the 
reader  to  see  the  remarks  of  the  author  himself  on  his 
own  work.  In  the  preface  to  his  second  publication 
he  said,  '  Kind  reader,  no  doubt  you  remember  that 
about  ten  years  ago  I  published  a  book  entitled  "The 


MAJESTY.  105 

New  England  Psalm  Singer;"  and  truly  a  most  mas- 
terly performance  I  then  thought  it  to  be.  How  lav- 
ish was  I  of  encomiums  on  this  my  infant  production! 
Said  I,  "Thou  art  my  Reuben,  my  first-born,  the  be- 
ginning of  my  strength;"  but  to  my  great  mortifica- 
tion I  soon  discovered  it  was  Reuben  in  the  sequel 
and  Reuben  all  over.  I  have  discovered  that  many 
pieces  were  never  worth  my  printing  or  your  inspec- 
tion.' Of  course  in  his  second  work,  which  at  length 
obtained  the  name  of  'Billings'  Best,'  and  which 
professed  to  be  an  abridgment  of  the  first,  he  omitted 
altogether  a  great  proportion  of  the  tunes,  and  amend- 
ed very  much  .those  he  retained,  particularly  in  the 
point  of  accent.  This  work,  as  well  as  his  fourth, 
called  the  '  Psalm  Singer's  Amusement,'  became  very 
popular,  and  no  other  music  for  many  years  was  heard 
throughout  New  England.  Many  of  the  New  Eng- 
land soldiers,  who  during  the  Revolutionary  War 
were  encamped  in  the  Southern  States,  had  many  of 
his  popular  tunes  by  heart,  and  frequently  amused 
themselves  by  singing  them  in  camp,  to  the  delight 
of  all  who  heard  them.  A  gentleman  in  Philadel- 
phia, distinguished  for  his  great  literary  attainments, 
as  well  as  for  his  musical  taste,  often  spoke  of  the 
great  pleasure  he  enjoyed  from  this  source  during  that 
period,  and  said  that  the  name  of  Billings  had  been 
dear  to  him  and  associated  with  the  happiest  recol- 
lections ever  since.  Finally,  whatever  may  be  said 
of  Billings'  music,  and  however  deficient  it  may  now 
be  thought  to  be  in  good  taste  as  well  as  in  many 

5* 


106  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

other  respects,  it  certainly  gave  great  delight  in  its 
day,  and  many  now  living,  who  were  accustomed  to 
hear  it  in  their  youth,  are  much  inclined  to  prefer  it 
to  the  more  elaborate  and  learned  music  of  the  pres- 
ent time." 

He  died  in  1800,  and  was  buried  in  the  Granary 
Burying  Ground.  No  stone  marks  his  grave.  It 
would  seem  that  the  musical  circles  of  Boston  owe  a 
monument,  or  a  memorial  of  some  kind,  to  his  mem- 
ory, for,  like  a  prophet  of  old,  he  led  the  way  of  those 
who  have  made  Boston  a  musical  city. 


MARSEILLAISE   HYMN. 

This  French  revolutionary  song  has  been  so  much 
used  in  churches  to  words  written  for  missionary  meet- 
ings that  its  real  origin  is  worthy  of  note  among 
church  tunes.  A  recent  investigation  in  London 
shows  that  the  song  owes  its  inspiration  to  the  Ger- 
man composer  Holtzmann,  though  its  development, 
form,  and  patriotic  use  are  due  to  Rouget  de  Lisle. 
The  following  account  of  its  true  origin  is  translated 
from  the  German,  and  was  published  in  " Education" 
in  1886: 

The  revolutionary  hymn  known  by  the  name  of 
Marseillaise,  at  the  sound  of  which  the  pillars  of  the 
French  monarchy  fell  like  the  walls  of  Jericho  before 
the  trumpets  of  Joshua,  was  not  composed,  as  it  has 
been  supposed  heretofore,  by  the  French  poet,  De 
Lisle,  but  by  a  worthy  German  named   Holtzmann, 


MARSEILLAISE  HYMN.  107 

who  was  the  organist  at  the  royal  court  of  the  Palat- 
inate. It  is  the  same  Holtzmann  of  whom  Mozart 
wrote  to  his  father  from  Mannheim  with  so  much 
commendation,  and  by  whom  a  religious  cantata  was 
presented  during  Mozart's  stay  in  Paris. 

When  this  organist  of  the  royal  court  composed 
the  melody  of  the  Marseillaise,  he  little  thought  to 
sound  a  trumpet  whose  tones  should  thrill  the  world, 
nor  could  he  have  anticipated  that  the  child  of  his 
muse  would  be  so  entirely  turned  from  the  use  to 
which  it  was  appropriated  as  to  become  the  leader  of 
an  atheistical  republican  army.  Who  would  imagine 
it?  That  hymn,  around  which  so  many  bloody  remi- 
niscences cluster,  was  originally  the  music  composed 
for  a  Credo  of  a  mass  some  twenty  years  before  the 
French  Revolution. 

The  manuscript  from  which  this  discovery  was 
made  bears  the  date  1776.  During  my  stay  in  Meers- 
burg,  the  former  residence  of  the  Bishop  of  Constance, 
and  where  I  was  appointed  organist  and  musical  di- 
rector of  the  cathedral,  I  examined  carefully  the  some- 
what extensive  musical  library  which  was  under  my 
care.  I  was  much  interested  in  certain  manuscripts 
which  had  been  received  by  Prince  Dalberg  from 
Salem  Cloister,  and  by  him  entrusted  to  the  keeping 
of  the  church.  They  were  mostly  masses,  vespers, 
etc. ,  by  Italian  and  German  masters.  Among  these  I 
found  six  masses  with  this  title:  "VI  Short  Masses, 
written  in  an  elegant  style,  in  accordance  with  mod- 
ern taste,  composed  by  Holtzmann."    These  interested 


108  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

me,  especially  by  reason  of  their  beautiful  airs,  flow- 
ing melodies,  pure  sentences,  and  easy  instrumenta- 
tion. I  examined  them  the  more  carefully,  therefore, 
and  was  not  a  little  surprised  to  find  in  No.  IV.  (in  G) 
the  complete  melody  of  the  Marseillaise.  Please  no- 
tice that  I  do  not  speak  of  a  similarity  of  reminiscence 
which,  perchance,  might  have  occurred  unintention- 
ally; but  there  is,  note  for  note,  a  conformity  in  mel- 
ody, harmony,  time,  and  tone.  De  Lisle  must  have 
had  a  copy  of  HolUmann's  masses  before  him  when 
he  set  his  words  to  music.  This  may  be  easily  ex- 
plained. De  Lisle  wished  the  hymn  which  he  had 
written  to  be  sung  at  once;  but,  as  there  was  no  com- 
poser at  his  command,  he  arranged  it  for  himself.  He 
played  or  sang,  probably,  in  the  churches  and  con- 
vents; so  that  Holtzmann's  masses,  which  had  found 
their  way,  by  means  of  copies,  to  the  Rhine,  Alsatia, 
and  to  the  bishoprics  of  Speier  and  Strasburg,  were 

familiar  to  him.  j.  b.  Hamma. 

* 

MARTYN,  1834. 

SYMEON   B.   MARSH,    1798-1875. 

The  words  most  frequently  sung  to  this  tune  are 
perhaps  "Jesus,  lover  of  my  soul."  They  are  often 
sung  to  Lowell  Mason's  missionary  hymn,  "Watch- 
man, tell  us  of  the  night,"  and  to  Dykes'  tune  "Hol- 
lingside."  Holbrook's  also  is  used  in  many  collec- 
tions. 

In  the  "Story  of  the  Hymns"  several  stories  that 


MAXIM'S  MELODIES.  109 

have  been  told  in  regard  to  the  origin  of  this  hymn 
are  given.  The  following  account  is  regarded  as 
most  authentic:  "  Charles  and  John  Wesley  and  Rich- 
ard Pilmore  were  driven  by  a  mob  from  a  common 
where  they  were  holding  a  meeting,  and  hid  from 
violence  in  a  spring-house.  There  Charles  Wesley 
wrote  with  a  pencil  the  immortal  hymn. 


MAXIMS  MELODIES. 

GRANVILLE   MAXIM. 

These  were  local,  a  part  of  the  anonymous  songs 
of  the  old  New  England  revival.  Says  the  "Lewis- 
ton  (Maine)  Journal:" 

Among  the  early  inhabitants  of  Buckfield  was  one 
Granville  Maxim,  a  man  of  marked  ability,  but  of 
very  eccentric  habits.  He  early  manifested  an  ardent 
love  of  music,  and,  for  that  day,  was  said  to  have 
acquired  a  very  thorough  knowledge  of  its  principles. 
He  was  an  eminent  composer  and  author  of  many  of 
the  most  popular  melodies  of  that  day,  which  are  now 
known  as  continentals,  and  by  long  and  continued  use 
have  become  so  firmly  established  in  the  heart  of  not 
only  the  people  of  this  State,  but  throughout  this 
Union,  as  to  render  their  author's  name  almost  a 
household  word. 

In  early  life,  as  tradition  tells  us,  he  met  with  a 
very  serious  disappointment  in  love.  Tired  of  life 
and  disgusted  with  the  world,  he  one  morning  took  a 


no      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES, 

stout  rope  and  wandered  into  the  deep  forest  between 
the  Owl's  Head  and  Streaked  Mountain  with  the 
fixed  purpose  of  putting  an  end  to  his  existence.  He 
continued  his  way  till  he  came  to  a  deserted  logging- 
camp,  where  he  sat  down  to  rest  and  think  the  matter 
over.  On  the  old  hovel  sat  a  lone  sparrow  uttering 
her  lament  at  the  disturbing  of  her  nest  by  some  ruth- 
less marauder.  He  sat  for  a  long  time  listening  to 
the  plaintive  song  of  the  bereaved  bird.  At  last  he 
thought  to  leave  some  memento,  which  might  chance 
to  meet  the  eyes  of  his  lady-love,  and  in  some  measure 
remind  her  of  his  sufferings.  Going  to  a  birch-tree  he 
removed  a  piece  of  bark,  on  which  he  wrote  the  fol- 
lowing lines: 

"  As  on  some  lonely  building  top 
The  sparrow  tells  her  moan, 
Far  from  the  tents  of  joy  and  hope 
I  '11  sit  and  grieve  alone." 

He  then  commenced  to  write  a  plaintive  melody 
of  most  exquisite  sweetness  in  the  minor  scale,  justly 
befitting  the  language.  When  he  had  finished  this 
he  had  become  so  interested  in  his  work  that  he  be- 
gan to  affix  the  other  parts,  and  his  whole  mind  and 
energies  seemed  wrapped  up  in  the  work  before  him. 

Evening  had  begun  to  cast  its  shadows  over  the 
valley  ere  his  task  was  completed.  When  the  whole 
was  adjusted  to  his  liking,  his  lively  imagination,  to 
his  infinite  delight,  pictured  the  glorious  harmony 
which  must  arise  from  his  subject  when  performed  by 
his  competent  choir.     His  love  of  life  returned,  and 


ME R  TON.  in 

his  idea  of  suicide  vanished.  Throwing  his  rope  into 
the  adjacent  bushes,  he  hastened  homeward,  and  be- 
came a  very  popular  and  useful  man. 


MERTON. 

HENRY   K.   OLIVER,    1S00-1SS5. 

Gen.  Oliver  was  an  organist  in  Salem  from  1828 
to  1849.  One  Sunday  morning  in  1843  the  hymns  of 
the  day  were  given  him.     One  of  them  was: 

Ye  golden  lamps  of  heaven,  farewell, 

With  all  your  feeble  light ; 
Farewell,  thou  ever-changing  moon, 

Pale  empress  of  the  night. 

And  thou,  refulgent  orb  of  day, 

With  brightest  beams  arrayed, 
My  soul  that  rises  o'er  thy  sphere 

No  more  demands  thy  aid. 

The  stars  are  but  the  shining  dust 

Of  my  divine  abode, 
The  pavement  of  those  heavenly  courts 

Where  I  shall  dwell  with  God. 

He  could  find  no  suitable  tune  to  these  words. 
During  the  afternoon  sermon,  however,  a  tune  to  the 
sublime  hymn  came  floating  into  his  mind.  We  con- 
tinue the  story  as  told  in  "Olden-Time  Music,"  edited 
by  Henry  M.  Brooks: 

Taking  paper  and  pencil,  he  secured  it,  adding 
the  parts  in  the  score  for  his  own  use,  and  then  giving 
to  each  singer  his  part  on  a  slip.     The  singers  were  of 


ii2  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

rare  excellence,  both  in  voice  and  skill;  and  the  new 
tune,  given  with  earnestness  and  effect,  took  at  once. 

The  next  day  Gen.  Oliver  accidentally  met  Dr.  Bra- 
zer,  who  inquired  about  the  new  tune,  its  author,  and 
where  it  could  be  found,  adding  that  he  did  not  re- 
member ever  to  have  heard  it  before. 

"  I  never  did  myself,"  replied  its  author;  and  then 
confessing  that  he  had  employed  his  time  otherwise 
than  in  attending  to  the  sermon,  asked  the  good  min- 
ister to  forgive  him  his  neglect. 

"Oh,  yes,"  said  Dr.  Brazer;  "but  look  a  moment: 
have  I  not  a  right  to  complain  that  you,  a  member  of 
my  church,  a  teacher  in  my  Sunday-school,  and  the 
leader  of  my  choir,  should  have  set  so  bad  an  example 
as  to  be  seen  by  the  singers  writing  music,  instead  of 
listening  to  my  preaching?" 

"Yes,  yes;  I  have  done  evil,  in  that  view  of  the 
case,"  was  the  reply.  "But  the  thought  came  sud- 
denly, and  had  I  not  pencilled  it  down  it  would  have 
been  lost;  and  now,  being  secured,  it  may  possibly  do 
some  good  in  its  way.  I  accept  the  reproof;  but  tell 
me,  suppose  that  while  we  were  leading  the  worship 
at  our  end  of  the  church,  and  the  people  and  their 
minister  were  joining  therein,  either  in  voice  or  in 
spirit,  as  they  should  do,  some  new  thought  which 
had  not  occurred  to  you  during  your  work  at  the  ser- 
mon in  your  study  should  suddenly  suggest  itself, 
would  you  not  just  quietly  pencil  it  down  on  the  mar- 
gin of  your  notes,  so  that  we,  the  people,  might  have 
the  benefit  of  it?" 


MISSIONAR  Y  HYMN.  1 1 3 

"Oh,  yes,"  replied  Dr.  Brazer;  "I  have  done  that 
many  times,  and  with  good  effect  too." 

11  Yes,  yes,"  was  the  retort;  "so  I  have  heard. 
Now  don't  yon  think  it  wrong  for  the  minister  of  the 
parish,  seated  as  he  is  in  open  sight  of  all  the  wor- 
shippers, to  be  seen  scribbling  marginal  notes  while 
the  choir  is  endeavoring  to  lead  the  people  in  their 
songs  of  praise?  Hey,  doctor,  whose  notes  are  the 
more  sinful  —  yours  of  the  margin  or  mine  of  the 
score?  So,  in  the  way  of  rebuke,  let's  call  it  an  even 
thing,  and  if  sin  it  be,  let's  sin  no  more." 

A  hearty  laugh  followed. 


MILLENNIAL  DAWN. 

GEORGE  JAMES  WEBB,    1803-18S7. 

Usually  sung  to  the  words,  by  Rev.  S.  F.  Smith, 

"  The  morning  light  is  breaking." 

Among  the  musical  friends  of  Dr.  Mason  was 
George  James  Webb,  the  well-known  author  of  the 
hymn-tune  "Millennial  Dawn."  He  was  born  in 
Wiltshire,  England,  1803.  He  was,  with  Dr.  Mason, 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  Boston  Academy  of  Music, 
of  which  a  very  popular  music-book  of  nearly  half  a 
centurv  a^o  bears  the  name. 


MISS  ION  A  RY  H  YMN. 

The  popular  story  of  the  composition  of  this  tune, 
which   has  so  powerfully  aided  the  cause  of  foreign 

The  Stoiy  of  the  Tunes. 


ii4  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES, 

missions,  is  confirmed  by  a  letter  from  the  venerable 
widow  of  Dr.  Mason,  and  is  as  follows: 

A  lady  in    Savannah,  Ga.,  was  struck  with   the 
beauty  of  Bishop  Reginald  Heber's  noble  hymn, 

"From  Greenland's  icy  mountains." 
She  could  find,  however,  no  tune  that  seemed  to  suit 
her.  She  remembered  a  young  bank  clerk,  Lowell 
Mason,  afterwards  so  celebrated,  who  was  just  a  few 
steps  down  the  street,  and  who  had  a  reputation  as  a 
musical  genius.  So  she  sent  her  son  to  ask  him  to 
write  a  tune  that  would  go  with  the  hymn.  In  just 
half  an  hour  the  boy  came  back  with  the  music,  and 
the  melody  dashed  off  in  such  haste  is  to  this  day  sung 
with  that  song. 


MONSON. 


SAMUEL    R.    BROWN,    iSlO-Ii 


This  tune  was  composed  by  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  R. 
Brown,    the   son   of   Phoebe   Brown,    who   wrote   the 
hymn  which  in  most  collections  begins, 
"I  love  to  steal  a  while  away." 
This  is  one  of  the  rare  instances  of  a  son  setting  to 
music  a  mother's  hymn. 

The  tune  "Brown"  was  written  for  it  by  Wm.  B. 
Bradbury.  * 

We  were  recently  reading  an  account  of  the  rapid 
progress  of   Christian    thought   in  Japan.      The  old 
superstitions   of   thousands   of   years   in    the   flowery 
*  See  "  Hinsdale." 


MONSON.  115 

kingdom  are  crumbling  before  the  silent  march  of  the 
Cross.  I  had  occasion  to  speak  of  this  wonderful 
intellectual  and  spiritual  change  at  a  missionary  con- 
cert. After  the  concert  a  young  man  came  to  me 
with  the  question, 

"Who  was  the  first  American  missionary  to 
Japan?" 

"Brown,"  I  said;  "Dr.  Brown,  of  Yokohama.  He 
was  sent  out  by  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church." 

"What  was  his  early  history?"  asked  the  young 
man. 

"  I  do  not  know,"  I  said.  "  I  have  heard  that  Dr. 
Brown  once  remarked  that  he  owed  all  that  he  was  to 
the  influence  of  his  mother.  You  may  know  the 
hymn-tune  'Monson.'  It  was  written  by  Dr.  Brown; 
and  his  grandfather,  I  believe,  wrote  the  hymn-tune 
4  Hinsdale.'" 

The  question,  to  which  I  could  then  give  but  an 
imperfect  answer,  haunted  me.  I  found  myself  ask- 
ing, "What  was  the  influence  behind  the  beginning 
of  American  missionary  work  in  Japan  ?  What  was 
the  early  inspiration  of  the  pioneer?" 

There  was  once  an  infant  Sunday-school  in  Mon- 
son, Mass.,  under  the  spiritual  guidance  of  a  very 
humble  woman,  whose  name  was  Phcebe  Hinsdale 
Brown.  This  quiet  woman,  of  a  simple  home  and 
very  limited  means,  gave  her  heart  and  prayers  to 
this  infant-class;  and  her  lessons  were  so  intelligently 
and  conscientiously  prepared  that  they  were  in  part 
published  by  the  Massachusetts  Sunday-school  Society. 


n6      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Mrs.  Brown  was  born  in  Canaan,  New  York,  1783. 
Her  maiden  name  was  Hinsdale.  She  married  Timo- 
thy H.  Brown,  a  house-painter,  a  poor,  hard-working 
man;  and  they  began  their  home  at  Ellington,  Tol- 
land Co.,  Conn. 

While  living  at  Ellington  Mrs.  Brown  wrote  a 
poem,  a  part  of  which  is  now  generally  familiar  to 
the  whole  Christian  world.     It  began: 

Yes,  when  the  toilsome  day  is  gone, 

And  night  with  banners  gray 
Steals  silently  the  glade  along 

In  twilight's  soft  array, 

I  love  to  steal  a  while  away 

From  little  ones  and  care, 
And  spend  the  hours  of  setting  day 

In  gratitude  and  prayer. 

I  love  to  feast  on  nature's  scenes 

When  falls  the  evening  dew, 
And  dwell  upon  her  silent  themes, 

For  ever  rich  and  new. 

I  love  in  solitude  to  shed 

The  penitential  tear, 
And  all  his  promises  to  plead 

Where  none  but  God  can  hear. 

In  the  "Friend,"  published  in  Honolulu,  in  1879, 
appeared  a  history  of  this  hymn,  the  facts  of  which 
were  furnished  by  Dr.  S.  R.  Brown,  of  Yokohama,  the 
son  of  Mrs.  Brown,  and  the  pioneer  missionary  to 
Japan.  The  history  includes  Mrs.  Brown's  recollec- 
tions of  it. 

"It  was  at  Ellington"  (1818),  she  says,  "that  I 
wrote  the  'Twilight  Hymn.'  My  baby  daughter  was 
in  my  arms  when  I  wrote  it." 


MONSON.  117 

It  was  her  custom  to  go  out  alone  at  twilight  and 
walk  near  or  in  a  neighbor's  garden,  to  engage  in 
silent  prayer.  Her  neighbor  spoke  to  her  of  such 
conduct  being  strange.  This  wounded  her  feelings, 
and  led  to  the  writing  of  the  hymn,  which  was  a  poem 
of  apology. 

"I  had  four  little  children,"  she  says,  "a  small 
unfinished  house,  a  sick  sister  in  the  only  finished 
room,  and  there  was  not  a  place  where  I  could  retire 
for  devotion.  There  was  no  retired  room,  rock,  or 
grove  where  I  could  go,  as  in  former  days;  but  there 
was  no  dwelling-house  between  the  house  and  the  one 
where  that  lady  lived.  Her  garden  extended  down  a 
good  way  below  her  house,  which  stood  on  a  beauti- 
ful eminence.  I  often  walked  up  that  beautiful  gar- 
den, and  felt  I  could  have  the  privilege  of  that  walk 
and  a  few  moments  of  uninterrupted  communion  with 
God;  but,  after  knowing  that  my  steps  were  watched 
and  made  the  subject  of  remark  and  censure,  I  could 
not  enjoy  it  as  I  had  done." 

Mrs.  Brown  removed  to  Monson,  Mass.,  where  she 
lived  some  thirty  years;  hence  the  name  of  the  hymn- 
tune  "Monson,"  written  by  her  son.  She  died  at 
Henry,  111.,  1861.  Her  infant  Sunday-school  at  Mon- 
son was  the  field  of  her  simple  missionary  work.  It 
was  poor  in  all  its  resources,  and,  in  a  worldly  view, 
an  unpromising  effort;  but  it  was  rich  in  prayer,  faith, 
and  spiritual  knowledge — and  here  was  the  motive 
power  behind  the  impulse  that  sent  the  first  American 
missionary  to  Japan. 


n8      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"Her  record  is  on  high,"  says  Dr.  Brown  of  his 
mother,  "and  she  is  with  the  Lord  whom  she  loved 
and  served  as  faithfully  as  any  person  I  ever  knew; 
nay,  more  than  any  other.  To  her  I  owe  all  I  am; 
and  if  I  have  done  any  good  in  the  world,  to  her,  un- 
der God,  it  is  due.  She  seems  even  now  to  have  me 
in  her  hands,  holding  me  up  for  work  for  Christ  and 
his  cause  with  a  grasp  I  can  feel." 

David  Hogg,  the  Sunday-school  teacher  of  Dr. 
Livingstone,  was  a  very  humble  man,  but  he  had 
spiritual  experience  and  knowledge.  Phoebe  H. 
Brown  did  not  learn  to  read  until  she  was  eighteen 
years  of  age,  but  she  became  a  student  of  the  Bible 
and  understood  spiritual  truth.  It  is  spiritual  knowl- 
edge whose  influence  is  the  most  potent  in  forming 
character,  and  that  lives  the  longest  in  the  world.  It 
is  the  unseen  influences  that  are  eternal. 

Such  incidents  as  these  have  an  eloquent  and  in- 
spiring lesson  to  the  teacher  in  the  smallest  country 
Sunday-school.  The  hand  that  leads  the  child  to 
spiritual  knowledge  grasps  the  future,  wherever  the 
work  may  be  done.  One  would  be  surprised  to  find 
how  large  a  number  of  our  public  men,  members  of 
Congress,  mayors  of  cities,  leaders  of  thought  in  all 
the  professions,  have  been  trained  in  the  country 
Sunday-school.  New  England  can  boast  many  men 
whose  higher  spiritual  thoughts  were  guided  by  some 
God-fearing  man  or  woman  in  a  schoolhouse  Sunday- 
school;  and  how  many  ministers  and  missionaries  can 
trace  the  beginning  of  their  spiritual  quickening  to  as 


"MORE  TO  FOLLOW."  119 

humble  an  influence  as  the  steadfast  old  Scottish  Sun- 
day-school teacher,  David  Hogg! 

Sow,  and  leave  the  harvest  to  the  future.  The 
autumn  sun  will  come  to  the  sky.  It  is  one  of  the 
sweetest  attainments  of  spiritual  growth  to  love,  to 
trust  God,  and  wait  his  will. 

"  Do  thou  thy  work:  it  shall  succeed, 
In  thine  or  in  another's  day ; 
And  if  denied  the  victor's  meed, 
Thou  shalt  not  miss  the  toiler's  pay." 


"MORE  TO  FOLLOW r 

WORDS  AND   MUSIC   BY   P.  P.  BLISS,    1838-1876. 

This  hymn  was  suggested  by  the  following  inci- 
dent: 

A  vast  fortune  was  left  in  the  hands  of  a  minis- 
ter for  one  of  his  poor  parishioners.  Fearing  that  it 
might  be  squandered  if  suddenly  bestowed  upon  him, 
the  wise  minister  sent  him  a  little  at  a  time,  with  a 
note  saying,  uT/iis  is  tJiine;  use  it  wisely;  tliere  is  more 
to  follow."     Brethren,  that's  just  the  way  God  deals 

With   US.  D.   L.  MOODY. 

Have  you  on  the  Lord  believed  ? 

Still  there  's  more  to  follow ; 
Of  his  grace  have  you  received  ? 

Still  there  's  more  to  follow. 
Oh,  the  grace  the  Father  shows ! 

Still  there  's  more  to  follow; 
Freely  he  his  grace  bestows, 

Still  there  's  more  to  follow. 


120  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Chorus. 
More  and  more,  more  and  more, 

Always  more  to  follow  ; 
Oh,  his  matchless,  boundless  love ! 

Still  there  's  more  to  follow. 


MT.   VERNON. 

DR.  LOWELL  MASON,  1792-1872. 

The  beautiful  hymn-tune 
composed  by  Dr.  Lowell  Mason  on  the  inspiration  of 
the  moment,  under  the  influence  of  feelings  excited 
by  the  death  of  a  pupil,  Miss  M.  J.  Crockett,  aged  six- 
teen, of  the  Mt.  Vernon  School,  Boston,  July,  1833. 
Rev.  J.  S.  C.  Abbott  thus  tells  the  story: 

When  the  hour  appointed  for  the  music  lesson 
arrived  in  the  school  where  the  pupil  died,  and  where 
Dr.  Mason  taught,  and  the  pupils  had  arranged  their 
desks  and  prepared  themselves  for  the  lesson,  the  im- 
pression seemed  deepened,  for  the  missing  one  had 
been,  perhaps,  peculiarly  distinguished  for  her  pro- 
ficiency in  music  and  for  the  interest  which  she  had 
taken  in  the  lesson. 

At  the  appointed  moment  Mr.  Mason  entered  and 
walked  to  his  usual  position  at  the  blackboard.  He 
immediately  commenced  the  lesson,  writing  upon  the 
board,  as  was  his  custom,  a  series  of  simple  exercises 
for  the  pupils  to  sing,  but  all  now  of  a  plaintive  char- 
acter. He  made  few  remarks  and  gave  little  oral 
instruction,  but  wrote  in  succession  upon  the  board 
strains  harmonizing,  in  the  expression  of  sadness  and 


■r=£# 


MUHLENBERG.  121 

solemnity  which  characterized  them,  with  the  feel- 
ings appropriate  to  the  occasion. 

In  what  he  said  he  made  no  allusion  to  the  occa- 
sion itself  or  to  the  loss  which  all  present  felt  that 
they  had  sustained.  He  went  on  in  this  way  until 
the  close  of  the  hour  began  to  draw  near.  Then  he 
combined  the  passages  which  had  been  sung  sepa- 
rately as  exercises,  or  strains  in  harmony  with  them, 
and  formed  the  tune  "Mt Vernon"  as  it  is  now  printed 
in  the  books,  and  the  pupils  sang  it  by  note. 

After  repeating  it  two  or  three  times,  till  the  air 
had  become  in  a  measure  familiar  to  all,  he  wrote 
beneath  it  the  words  by  which  it  is  now  usually 
accompanied,  beginning, 

"Sister, thou  wast  mild  and  lovely, 
Gentle  as  the  summer  breeze." 

After  the  class  had  sung  the  four  stanzas,  Mr.  Ma- 
son closed  the  lesson  in  his  usual  manner  and  left  the 
room.  It  would  be  difficult  for  one  not  present  at  the 
time  to  conceive  of  the  deep  but  quiet  solemnity  of 
the  effect  produced  by  this  delicate  and  gentle  mode 
of  dealing  with  the  emotions  of  young  hearts  on  such 
an  occasion. 


MUHLENBERG. 
"  I  would  not  live  ahvay." 

Tins  hymn  is  often  sung  to  the  old  melody  uAf- 
ton.n      The  words  are  by  the  Rev.  W.  A.   Muhlen- 

6 


122  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

berg,  D.  D.  The  hymn  appeared  June  3,  1826,  in 
the  "Episcopal  Recorder." 

The  late  Dr.  Muhlenberg,  of  New  York,  was  the 
first  to  introduce  large  choirs  of  male  voices  into  that 
city.  He  used  them  to  lead  the  worship  of  the 
Church  of  the  Holy  Communion,  of  w7hich  he  was 
pastor.  There  were  two  choirs,  one  up  stairs,  called 
"the  upper  choir,"  and  one  below,  near  the  chancel, 
known  as  "the  lower  choir."  They  chanted  the 
Psalter  antiphonally,  the  lower  choir  leading  the  con- 
gregation. 

During  the  cholera  season,  Fred,  one  of  the  boy- 
choristers,  was  attacked  by  the  terrible  disease.  The 
good  pastor  hastened  to  his  bedside.  With  a  last 
effort  the  little  fellow  threw  his  arms  around  the  doc- 
tor's neck,  kissed  him,  and  expired. 

A  week  or  two  later  a  messenger  came  for  him  to 
see  another  of  his  boy-choristers.  He  found  the  child 
dying.     The  family  were  kneeling  around  the  bed. 

"There,  doctor,  is  your  little  chorister,"  said  the 
distracted  mother,  as  the  pastor  entered  the  room. 

He  began  to  pray  with  the  mourners,  but  ere  he 
had  finished,  the  boy  breathed  out  his  spirit. 

"Do  you  remember,  doctor,"  asked  the  mother, 
gazing  on  her  dead  boy,  "that  a  few  days  ago  you 
said  to  me,  'Willie  is  now  ready  to  take  Fred's  place; 
he  must  go  into  "  the  upper  choir  "  '?  " 

"I  do,"  answered  the  pastor, 

"Your  words  seemed  prophetic —  'the  upper 
choir'!" 


MUHLENBER  G.  123 

The  good  doctor  went  home  and  wrote  in  his  jour- 
nal: 

"Willie  was  to  have  sung  the  alto  in  *  Arise  and 
shine,'  on  Twelfth  Night— just  as  Fred  began  last 
year.  Down  stairs,  too,  he  had  been  sitting  precisely 
in  Fred's  place.  So  God  takes  my  boys.  I  have  often 
thought  of  dressing  them  in  surplices,  but  he  arrays 
them  in  his  own  white  robes." 

The  good  doctor,  who  wrote  the  well-known  hymn, 

"  I  would  not  live  alway," 

has  himself  gone  to  the  "  upper  choir."  His  hymn, 
that  will  "live  alway,"  showed  that  his  heart  and 
thought  were  there. 

They  who  "turn  many  to  righteousness"  shall 
shine  "as  the  stars,"  and  happy  are  the  workers  in 
answer  to  human  needs  whose  thoughts  mingle  with 
the  hopes,  aspirations,  and  joys  of  the  "  upper  choir." 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  in  old  age  was  pastor  of  St. 
Luke's  Hospital,  where  not  only  the  bodies  but  the 
souls  of  the  sick  are  ministered  to.  He  resided  in  the 
house,  and  welcomed  the  lowliest  offices  of  love  as 
opportunities  of  ministering  to  the  Lord's  sick. 

One  day  a  poor,  purblind  man,  just  discharged 
from  another  hospital,  sought  the  pastor.  After  giv- 
ing the  old  man  a  dinner  in  his  own  study,  the  clergy- 
man was  met  by  the  maid-servant,  carrying  back  the 
empty  plates  to  the  dining-room. 

"O  doctor,  doctor  !"  she  exclaimed,  "why  did  you 
not  call  me  to  get  these?" 


i24  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"No,  no,"  was  the  reply,  "I  am  a  servant  in  the 
Lord's  hotel." 

The  devoted  man's  mere  presence  was  a  bene- 
diction. "There  will  never  be  another  such  Chris- 
tian within  these  walls,"  sobbed  a  poor  woman,  as  she 
took  grateful  leave  on  her  recovery.  His  example  has 
proved  a  precious  treasure  to  the  church. 

Youth's  Companion. 
MY  AIN  COUNTRIE. 

P.   P.    BLISS.      1838-1876.       FOUNDED  ON  A   SCOTCH   MELODY. 

Words  by  Mrs.  Mary  Lee  Demarest,  written  in 
1861,  and  published  in  the  "New  York  Observer" 
over  the  signature  "  L." 

Mr.  Bliss  lived  to  do  good  by  uplifting  those  who 
had  fallen.  Gifted  with  a  genius  for  writing  "gospel 
songs"  which  took  hold  of  the  popular  heart,  he  set 
them  to  stirring  music  and  sang  them  from  place  to 
place.     To  hundreds  they  proved  songs  of  good  news. 

On  one  Sunday  he  sang  a  number  of  his  sacred 
songs  at  a  Sunday-school  in  Minneapolis,  prefacing 
each  with  appropriate  remarks,  such  as  moved  all  to 
unite  in  expressing  the  sentiment  of  the  words  and 
music. 

Among  these  was  the  touching  spiritual  song, 
"My  Ain  Countrie."  Home,  its  sacred  associations, 
satisfying  joys,  familiar  scenes,  was  the  theme  with 
which  he  prefaced  the  quaint  words  and  touching 
melody.  Sympathetic  tears  glistened  in  many  eyes 
as  he  spoke  of  his  own  home  in  Chicago,  and  the  de- 


MY  AIN  CO  UN  TRIE.  1 25 

light  with  which  he  would  even  then  run  up  the 
steps  and  hear  his  little  son,  rushing  to  the  door,  ex- 
claim, "  Papa  's  come  !  papa  's  come  !" 

"But,  children,"  he  added,  "there's  another  home 
to  which  I  expect  to  go  bv-and-by.  I  don't  know 
when  it  will  be,  and  I  am  willing  to  wait;  for  I  love 
to  tell  you  about  the  dear  Saviour  and  the  mansions 
he  is  preparing  for  all  who  love  him.  Oh,  how  glad 
and  happy  I  shall  be  when  I  get  to  that  blessed  home; 
and  I  want  to  meet  all  of  you  there." 

Then,  with  a  voice  of  tenderness,  he  sang  "My 
Ain  Countrie,"  whose  fourth  stanza  seems  almost 
prophetic  of  the  sudden  death,  the  quick  keeping 
" tryst,"  that  awaited  the  sweet  singer. 

I  am  far  frae  my  hame,  an'  I  'm  weary  aftenwhiles 

For  the  langed-for  hame-bringing  an'  my  Father's  welcome  smiles; 

I  '11  ne'er  be  fu'  content  until  my  e'en  do  see 

The  gowden  gates  o'  heaven  an'  my  ain  countrie. 

The  earth  is  flecked  wi'  flowers,  mony-tinted,  fresh,  and  gay; 

The  birdies  warble  blithely,  for  my  Father  made  them  sae; 

But  these  sichts  an'  these  soun's  will  as  naething  be  to  me 

When  I  hear  the  angels  singing  in  my  ain  countrie. 

I  Ye  his  gude  word  o'  promise  that  some  gladsome  day  the  King 

To  his  ain  royal  palace  his  banished  hame  will  bring ; 

Wi'  e'en  an'  wi'  hearts  running  ower  we  shall  see 

"  The  King  in  his  beauty,"  in  our  ain  countrie. 

My  sins  hae  been  mony,  an'  my  sorrows  hae  been  sair, 

But  there  they  '11  never  vex  me,  nor  be  remembered  mair ; 

For  his  bluid  hath  made  me  white,  an'  his- hand  shall  dry  my  e'e 

When  he  brings  me  hame  at  last  to  my  ain  countrie. 

Sae  little  noo  I  ken  o'  yon  blessed  bonnie  place; 
I  ainly  ken  it's  hame,  whaur  we  shall  see  his  face  ; 
It  wad  surely  be  eneuch  for  ever  mair  to  be 
In  the  glory  o'  his  presence  in  our  ain  countrie. 


126  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Like  a  bairn  to  its  mither,  a  wee  birdie  to  its  nest, 

I  wad  fain  be  ganging  noo  unto  my  Saviour's  breast, 

For  he  gathers  in  his  bosom  witless,  worthless  lambs  like  me, 

An'  he  carries  them  himseP  to  his  ain  countrie. 

He  is  faithfu'  that  hath  promised;  he  '11  surely  come  again : 
He  '11  keep  his  tryst  wi'  me,  at  what  hour  I  dinna  ken ; 
But  he  bids  me  still  to  wait,  an'  ready  aye  to  be 
To  gang  at  ony  moment  to  my  ain  countrie. 
So  I  'm  watching  aye,  an'  singing  of  my  hame  as  I  wait 
For  the  soun'ing  o'  his  footfa'  this  side  the  gowden  gate. 
God  gie  his  grace  to  ilk  ane  wha  listens  noo  to  me, 
That  we  a'  may  gang  in  gladness  to  our  ain  countrie. 

It  was  a  terrible,  horrible  disaster,  to  human  think- 
ing, amid  which  the  good  man  was  in  a  moment 
called  "  to  gang"  to  his  "ain  countrie."  But  to  his 
"watching"  heart  the  crash  of  the  bridge,  the  fall 
of  the  train,  the  roar  of  the  flames,  seemed  but  the 
whirlwind  and  the  chariot  of  fire.  Not  in  sorrow 
but  in  gladness  the  singer  heard  "the  soun'ing  o'  his 
footfa'"  which  announced  then  and  there  the  Lord's 
keeping  of  his  "  tryst." 

"God  gie  his  grace 

That  we  a'  may  gang  in  gladness  to  our  ain  countrie." 


NINETY  AND  NINE. 


IRA   D.   SANKEY. 


Elizabeth  C.  Clephane,  a  lady  in  Melrose,  Scot- 
land, was  led  to  see  the  beauty  of  the  character  of 
Christ  in  the  parable  of  the  Good  Shepherd.  She 
possessed  genius,  and  sometimes  expressed  her  best 
thoughts  in  verse.      The  vision  of  Christ  leaving  the 


NINETY  AND  NINE.  127 

glories  of  heaven  and  becoming  a  seeker  of  men  who 
had  gone  astray,  like  an  Eastern  shepherd  seeking  a 
wandering  sheep  in  perilous  places,  touched  her  heart 
with  poetic  fervor,  and  she  wrote  the  hymn  beginning: 

"  There  were  ninety  and  nine  that  safely  lay 
In  the  shelter  of  the  fold." 

One  of  the  stanzas  most  vividly  and  tenderly  expressed 
her  clear  view  of  divine  sympathy  and  compassion: 

"  But  none  of  the  ransomed  ever  knew 

How  deep  were  the  waters  crossed, 
Nor  how  dark  was  the  night  that  the  Lord  passed  through 

Ere  he  found  his  sheep  that  was  lost. 
Out  in  the  desert  he  heard  its  cry — 
Sick  and  helpless  and  ready  to  die." 

The  poem  was  published  in  a  local  paper,  and  the 
lady  soon  afterwards  died,  and  went  to  the  Good  Shep- 
herd whose  love  for  the  wandering  and  perishing  had 
gained  the  affections  and  service  of  her  life.  She  was 
buried  in  one  of  the  churchyards  in  beautiful  Melrose. 

The  efforts  of  a  sincere  life  always  meet  some  needs 
of  others,  and  are  often  given,  under  Providence,  a 
special  mission  in  the  world.  The  simplicity  and 
fervor  of  the  little  poem  gained  for  it  an  unexpected 
recognition. 

The  American  evangelist,  Mr.  Sankey,  was  one 
day  returning  from  Edinburgh  to  Glasgow,  to  hold  a 
farewell  meeting  there.  Glasgow  had  been  the  scene 
of  the  most  signal  triumphs  in  the  work  of  Messrs. 
Moody  and  Sankey,  and  this  farewell  gathering  prom- 
ised to  be  one  of  thanksgiving  and  tears,  of  wonderful 
interest,  power,  and  feeling. 


128  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Mr.  Sankey,  on  this  occasion,  desired  to  introduce  a 
new  hymn  which  would  represent  Christ  as  a  compas- 
sionate and  all-sufficient  Saviour.  "  Before  getting  on 
the  train,"  he  says,  "I  went  to  the  news-stand  and 
bought  two  or  three  papers — some  secular,  some  reli- 
gious— and  in  one  of  them  I  found  these  verses: 

"  '  There  were  ninety  and  nine  that  safely  lay 
In  the  shelter  of  the  fold.' 

"I  said  to  my  brother  Moody,  'That's  just  the 
hymn  I  have  been  wanting.  I  think  the  Lord  has 
really  sent  it  to  us  !' 

"  Next  day  this  little  tune  or  chant  that  it  is  set  to 
came  to  me. 

41  We  went  into  the  noon  meeting,  and  dear  Dr. 
Bonar,  who  has  written  so  many  beautiful  hymns,  was 
there,  and  the  thought  came  to  me,  'We  must  sing 
now  this  new  hymn  that  the  Lord  has  sent  us.' 

"The  tune  had  scarcely  formed  itself  in  my  head 
yet,  but  I  just  cut  the  words  from  the  paper,  put  it  in 
front  of  me  on  the  organ,  and  began  to  sing  them, 
hardly  knowing  where  the  tune  was  coming  from;  and 
what  a  blessed  meeting  we  had  !" 

The  meeting  was  a  very  crowded  one,  and  tender 
feelings  were  awakened  in  all  hearts,  bringing  vividly 
to  all  minds,  as  it  did,  the  fact  that  the  world  is  full  of 
farewells.  The  imagery  of  the  hymn — the  Shepherd, 
the  sheep-fold,  the  dark  night  on  the  hills,  the  anxious 
search  and  the  joyful  return — was  in  harmony  with 
Scottish  associations  and  touched  the  best  feelings  of 


"  NO  THING   TR  UE  B  UT  I  IE  A  VEN"         1 29 

the  converts  and  inquirers.       Christ  stood  revealed  in 
the  song. 

Away  in  the  gallery  there  sat  a  lady  who  was  at 
first  startled  and  then  deeply  affected  by  the  -hymn. 
She  was  unable  to  speak  to  the  sweet  singer  in  the 
confusion  that  followed  the  close  of  the  meeting,  but 
she  soon  after  wrote  to  him  from  Melrose  and  said,  "  I 
thank  you  for  having  sung,  the  other  day,  my  deceased 
sister's  words.  She  wrote  them  five  years  ago.  She 
is  in  heaven  now." 


NORTHFIELD. 

JEREMIAH    INGALLS,    I764-1S38. 

It  is  related  of  Mr.  Ingalls  that  as  he  was  travelling 
in  Massachusetts  he  became  very  hungry,  stopped  at 
an  inn,  and  ordered  his  dinner,  which  was  long  de- 
layed. The  delay  led  him  to  think  of  his  spiritual 
hunger,  and  give  him  time  to  compose  this  tune. 


"NOTHING  TRUE  BUT  HEAVEN." 

OLIVER   SHAW,  1778-1848. 

"Mary's  tears." 
"  Home  of  my  soul." 
"Down  in  the  Sunless  Retreats." 
Music  by  Oliver  Shaw,  born  in  1778.     He  was  a 
music   teacher   in   Providence,   R.   I.,  where   he  was 

The  Story  of  the  Tunes.  6* 


i3o  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

greatly   beloved   for   his   amiable   life   and   Christian 
character. 


0  CHURCH  OF  CHRIST. 

G.    F.    ROOT,  182O. 

"  O  Church  of  Christ,  our  blest  abode, 
Celestial  grace  is  thine  ; 
Thou  art  the  dwelling-place  of  God, 
The  gate  of  joys  divine. 

Chorus. 
"  Where'er  for  me  the  sun  may  set, 
Wherever  I  may  dwell, 
My  heart  shall  nevermore  forget 
Thy  courts,  Immanuel. 

"O  Church  of  Christ,  O  Church  of  Christ, 
I  came  to  thee  for  rest, 
And  found  it  more  than  earthly  peace 
To  be  Immanuel's  guest. 

"Whene'er  I  come  to  thee  in  joy, 
Whene'er  I  come  in  tears, 
Still  at  the  gate  called  Beautiful 
My  risen  Lord  appears. 

This  hymn  originally  appeared  in  the  Cantata  of 
"  Under  the  Palms."  The  cantata  was  written  for  the 
service  of  the  church  choir  and  Sunday-school,  and 
published  by  John  Church  &  Co.,  Cincinnati.  It  met 
with  great  success  in  England,  and  the  above  hymn 
found  a  place  in  Mr.  Spurgeon's  congregation,  and  in 
others  both  in  America  and  England. 


OLD  H  VXD  RED.  131 

OLD  HUXDRED. 

GU1LLALME   FRANCK,    152O-157O. 

This  is  sometimes  attributed  to  Martin  Luther,  but 
was  probably  written  by  William  (Guillaume)  Franck, 
one  of  fifty  musicians  who  composed  tunes  for  the 
French  version  of  the  Psalms.  These  tunes  were 
printed  in  Strasburg,  1545,  shortly  before  Luther's 
death. 

Some  say  that  Louis  Bourgeois,  a  Frenchman  who 
perished  at  the  Massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew,  August 
24,  1572,  composed  Old  Hundred. 

Mr.  Whitefield  was  one  day  preaching  in  Boston 
on  the  wonders  of  the  Creation  when  a  tempest  arose. 
The  storm  became  terrific,  and  the  great  preacher  fell 
on  his  knees  and  repeated  the  hymn : 

"  Hark  !  th'  Eternal  rends  the  sky  ! 
A  might)-  voice  before  him  goes! — 
A  voice  of  music  to  his  friends, 
But  breathing  thunder  to  his  foes ! 
Come,  children,  to  your  Father's  arms  : 
Hide  in  the  chambers  of  my  grace 
Till  the  fierce  storm  be  overblown 
And  my  revenging  fury  cease." 

"Let  us  devoutly  sing  to  the  praise  and  glory  of 
God  the  7th  hymn:  Old  Hundred." 

The  whole  congregation  instantly  arose  and  poured 
forth  the  sacred  song,  in  which  they  were  nobly  sec- 
onded  by  the  scientific   and   respected    Mr.  ,  on 

the  full  organ,  in  a  style  of  pious  grandeur  and  heart- 
felt devotion  that  was  never  surpassed.     By  the  time 


132  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

the  hymn  was  finished  the  storm  was  hushed,  and  the 
sun,  bursting  forth,  showed  through  the  windows  to  the 
enraptured  assembly  a  magnificent  and  brilliant  arch 
of  peace.  The  preacher  resumed  his  desk  and  his  dis- 
course with  this  apposite  quotation: 

"Look  upon  the  rainbow,  and  praise  him  that 
made  it;  very  beautiful  it  is  in  the  brightness  thereof! 

''It  compasseth  the  heaven  about  with  a  glorious 
circle,  and  the  hands  of  the  Most  High  have  bended 
it."     Ecclus.  43:11,  12. 

The  remainder  of  the  services  were  well  calcula- 
ted to  sustain  that  elevated  feeling  which  had  been 
produced;  and  the  benediction  with  which  the  good 
man  dismissed  the  flock  was  universally  received  with 
streaming  eyes  and  hearts  overflowing  with  tenderness 

and  gratitude.  Boston  "Telegraph,"  1824. 

A  beautiful  and  familiar  passage  (Psa.  126:5)  in 
the  Hebrew  reads,  "  They  that  sow  in  tears  shall  reap 
in  singing." 

To  some  brave  souls  in  trouble,  as  to  Paul  and  Silas 
in  prison,  the  singing  even  takes  the  place  of  the 
tears  and  anticipates  the  harvest  of  joy,  as  the  story  of 
David  Corrie  touchingly  illustrates. 

David  Corrie  was  a  Scotch  boy,  trained  in  the 
Covenanters'  faith,  and  early  taught  both  to  say  the 
Catechism  and  to  sing  the  Psalms. 

Many  of  the  grand  melodies  of  Luther  and  the 
German  Reformers  had  found  their  way  among  the 
harsher  tunes  of  his  native  land,  and  through  all  his 
childhood  and  youth  he  had  heard  them  and  joined  in 


OLD  HUNDRHD.  133 

them  by  the  fireside  and  at  the  kirk,  till  they  were  as 
familiar  as  his  own  name. 

But  David  Corrie  had  a  restless  spirit,  and  as  he 
grew  to  manhood  he  could  not  abide  at  home. 

He  shipped  as  a  sailor,  and  for  years  had  his  will  of 
wandering,  while  the  license  of  sea-life  gradually  wore 
out  the  pious  impressions  of  his  earlier  days. 

Then  a  sudden  sorrow  checked  him  in  his  erring 
ways  and  shut  him  up  to  reflection.  His  ship  fell 
into  the  clutches  of  the  Algerines,  and  he  was  carried 
in  chains  to  Oran  and  sold  as  a  slave. 

For  a  time  this  affliction,  so  terrible  to  his  restless, 
loving  nature,  almost  crushed  him,  but  the  old  memo- 
ries and  the  holy  lessons  of  his  youth  returned  at 
length,  and  became  his  only  comfort. 

Time  passed,  and  the  galling  hardship  of  his  servi- 
tude never  lightened,  and  no  deliverance  seemed  near. 
But  he  suffered  on  in  patience,  and  every  day,  when 
his  task  was  done,  and  he  lay  in  his  guarded  quarters, 
he  thought  over  the  sacred  texts  he  had  learned  in 
boyhood,  and  "sang  the  Lord's  songs  in  a  strange 
land." 

One  lovely  moonlight  night,  as  an  English  man-of- 
war  lay  to  in  the  harbor  off  the  shore  where  David 
was  confined,  some  sailors  heard  in  the  distance  the 
strains  of  "Old  Hundred  "  stealing  over  the  sea. 

Recent  events,  the  time,  the  character  of  the  place, 
all  quickly  suggested  the  explanation:  there  was  a 
British  subject  in  captivity.  Ever  ready  for  an 
adventure,  the  generous  tars  manned  a  boat,  and  fol- 


i34  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

lowing  the  sound  of  the  song,  reached  the  spot  where 
the  prisoner  lay,  and,  with  one  bold  stroke  in  the 
king's  name,  wrested  him  from  his  Moslem  guards- 
men's hands  and  carried  him  under  the  protection  of 
the  English  flag. 

Restored  to  liberty,  David  Corrie  returned  to  his 
dear  old  Scottish  home,  where  he  found  his  mother 
still  living.  Humble  gratitude  inspired  him  from  that 
day,  and,  mindful  of  his  strange  deliverance,  through 
all  his  life  of  piety  and  peace  he  sang  from  an  over- 
flowing heart  the  old  refrain, 

"  Be  thou,  O  God,  exalted  high." 

"  Youlh's  Companion." 


OLIVET. 

LOWELL  MASON,  1792-1872. 

The  "Christian  Union,"  New  York,  of  April  7, 
1887,  just  after  the  death  of  Dr.  Palmer,  gave  the  fol- 
lowing account  of  the  hymn  and  tune.    (See  Palmer, 
in  "  Story  of  the  Hymns.") 

"The  Rev.  Ray  Palmer,  D.  D.,  whose  name  and 
hymns  are  known  wherever  the  voice  of  Christian 
praise  is  raised  to  God,  died  at  his  home  in  Newark, 
N.  J.,  on  Tuesday  of  last  week,  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
nine.  His  last  incoherent  words  seemed  to  be  an  at- 
tempt to  repeat  verses. 

"Dr.  Palmer  was  born  in  1808  in  Rhode  Island, 
was  educated  at  the  Andover  School,  at  Yale  College, 
and  at  the  Yale  Theological  Seminary.     He  was  grad- 


OLIVET.  135 

uated  from  Yale  in  1830,  and  began  his  life-work  as  a 
teacher  in  New  York.  Here,  when  he  was  but  twenty- 
two  years  old,  he  wrote  his  first  and  most  popular 
hymn,  beginning, 

" '  My  faith  looks  up  to  thee, 

Thou  Lamb  of  Calvary, 

Saviour  divine!' 

"This  familiar  hymn  has  been  translated  into  a 
dozen  foreign  languages,  and  is  known  and  sung  in 
every  civilized  land.  It  might  never  have  been  pub- 
lished but  for  Dr.  Lowell  Mason,  who  met  Mr.  Palmer 
in  Boston  a  year  or  two  after  the  verses  were  written 
and  asked  him  for  some  sacred  lyric  to  be  set  to  music. 
Mr.  Palmer  gave  him  '  My  faith  looks  up  to  thee,'  and 
a  day  or  two  later,  when  Dr.  Mason  met  him  on  the 
street,  he  said  to  him, 

"  '  Mr.  Palmer,  you  may  live  many  years  and  do 
many  things,  but  you  will  always  be  best  known  as  the 
writer  of  that  hymn.' 

"  Dr.  Mason  composed  for  it  the  favorite  tune  of 
'Olivet,'  to  which  it  is  generally  sung." 

The  list  of  hymns  written  by  Ray  Palmer  is  a  long 
one.     Among  the  first  lines  are  the  following: 

c<  Come,  Holy  Ghost,  in  love." 

"  Fount  of  everlasting  love." 

"Away  from  earth  my  spirit  turns." 

"Jesus,  these  eyes  have  never  seen." 

"Jesus,  thou  joy  of  loving  hearts." 

"Oh,  sweetly  breathe  the  lyres  above." 

"  Come,  Jesus,  Redeemer,  abide  thou  with  me." 


136  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

OLMUTZ. 

GREGORIAN.      WORDS  BY  JAMES  MONTGOMERY. 

"  Servant  of  God,  well  done." 

As  a  rule  it  is  the  best  that  survives.  The  best 
music  lives;  but  genius  outlives  art,  and  that  is  the 
best  in  which  the  musical  faculty  is  inspired  by  an 
earnest  and  devout  soul.  In  church  music  certain 
characteristic  forms  have  from  time  to  time  appeared, 
and  those  which  have  best  proclaimed  a  truth  or  ex- 
pressed a  sentiment  have  lived  until  a  better  expres- 
sion came.  The  greatest  of  these,  perhaps,  is  the 
Gregorian  chant,  with  its  many  variations,  from  the 
stately  mass  to  simple  u  Olmutz n  or  "Hamburg." 
Like  a  triumphal  march  it  has  led  the  church  through 
many  years.  It  had  its  origin  in  ancient  music,  per- 
haps as  old  as  the  Hebrew  temple.  It  took  new 
phases  from  the  musical  church  of  Ambrose,  from 
Pope  Gregory,  from  Palestrina.  Modern  music  has 
not  supplanted  it  by  any  deeper  expression  of  devo- 
tion or  more  majestic  ascription  of  humble  and  devout 
praise. 

Gregory  the  Great  was  born  at  Rome,  of  an  illus- 
trious family,  about  540.  He  was  the  nuncio  of  Pope 
Pelagius  II.  to  Constantinople.  On  returning  from 
this  mission  he  desired  to  retire  from  the  world  for 
his  spiritual  good  and  to  pass  his  life  in  seclusion. 
But  he  had  a  sympathetic  nature.  Rome  was  visited 
by  a  direful  plague;  people  were  dying  everywhere, 


OLMUTZ.  137 

and  everywhere  crying  for  help.  Gregory  felt  im- 
pelled to  leave  his  retreat  and  go  to  the  people  with 
a  message  of  faith  and  hope.  How?  Strangely 
enough,  by  music.  He  came  forth  from  his  retreat, 
the  voice  of  one  crying  in  the  wilderness  of  the  great 
plague.  He  organized  musical  processions  and 
inarched  through  the  plague-stricken  streets  followed 
by  choirs  singing  litanies.  The  music  calmed  the 
terror  of  the  people,  revived  a  strong  religious  senti- 
ment, and  the  plague  was  stayed. 

Gregory  wTas  soon  after  elected  pope,  and  it  was 
due  to  the  missionary  efforts  of  the  pontiff  that  Eng- 
land received  Christianity.  Instead  of  the  life  of  re- 
tirement and  meditation  of  which  he  had  dreamed, 
he  became  one  of  the  most  active  potentates  of  his 
own  time  or  any  age;  yet  he  was  an  invalid  during 
most  of  his  life. 

About  five  half-centuries  before  the  time  of  Greg- 
ory, the  musical  church  of  St.  Ambrose  in  Milan  had 
begun  to  delight  the  world  with  the  gospel  of  song. 
Out  of  it  had  come  the  Te  Dcum  Landamus,  said  to 
have  been  first  sung  at  the  baptism  of  Augustine. 
The  Ambrosian  music  had  continued  until  this  time, 
and  a  need  now  be^an  to  be  felt  of  an  enlargement  of 
sacred  song.  Gregory  revised  the  old  music  and  es- 
tablished a  oreat  music  school  to  sinq-  from  the  "An- 
tiphonarium,"  as  the  first  great  church  music  book 
was  called.  He  used  to  superintend  this  music 
school  lying  on  his  bed,  and  for  centuries  the  rod  was 
preserved  with  which  he  used  sometimes  to  prompt 


138  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

dull  pupils  and  correct  mistakes.  It  was  thus  that 
the  Ambrosian  chant  passed  into  the  Gregorian,  and 
many  grand  tunes,  like  "Olmutz,"  are  adapted  from 
the  Gregorian  and  Ambrosian  music. 

The  hymn  usually  sung  to  Olmutz,  commencing 

"  Servant  of  God,  well  done," 

was  written  about  1825,  on  the  death  of  Rev.  Thomas 
Taylor,  a  Wesleyan  minister.  He  became  very  poor 
for  the  gospel's  sake.  He  died  suddenly  of  old  age. 
In  a  sermon  delivered  shortly  before  his  death  he  said, 
"I  should  like  to  die  like  an  old  soldier,  sword  in 
hand."     Hence  the  hymn. 

The  early  part  of  the  present  century  found  Eng- 
land as  full  of  poets  as  her  greenwoods  are  full  of 
singing  birds.  There  is  a  strange  sadness  in  the  last 
days  of  many  of  these  sweet  singers,  for  at  the  close 
of  life  they  looked  back  on  the  past  with  bitter  and 
gloomy  sorrow.     Byron  wrote, 

"  The  worm,  the  canker,  and  the  grief 
Are  mine  alone;" 

and  Shelley, 

"Alas!  I  have  not  hope  nor  health, 
Nor  peace  within,  nor  calm  around." 

But  there  was  one  poet,  not  greatly  valued  in  his 
early  career,  whose  life  came  to  a  triumphant  conclu- 
sion. At  the  age  of  eighty-two  he  could  say,  "Good- 
ness and  mercy  have  followed  me  all  the  days  of  my 
life."  He  thus  paints  the  prospects  that  unfolded 
before  his  mind  in  his  last  calm  and  expectant  years: 


OLMUTZ.  1 39 

"My  Father's  house  on  high, 
Home  of  my  soul,  how  near 
At  times  to  faith's  foreseeing  eye 
Thy  golden  gates  appear." 

Who  has  not  sung  his  hymns,  "Sow  in  the  morn 
thy  seed,"  'k  A  poor,  wayfaring  man  of  grief,"  "Oh, 
where  shall  rest  be  found ?"  "Servant  of  God,  well 
done,"  "For  ever  with  the  Lord"? 

This  poet  was  born  in  a  humble  cottage  in  Ayr- 
shire, a  quaint  parsonage,  a  place  where  pilgrims 
have  long  loved  to  go  to  gather  helpful  memories. 
His  father  was  a  Moravian  minister,  a  poor  man,  but 
one  who  carried  the  love  of  God  in  his  heart. 

The  Moravians  at  this  time  believed  God  called 
them  to  plant  missions  in  the  parts  of  the  world  where 
white  men  could  not  long  expect  to  live — missions  to 
which  they  would  become  martyrs — as  in  Greenland 
and  Africa.  Some  of  them  offered  to  sell  themselves 
into  slavery,  that  they  might  the  better  labor  for  the 
spiritual  good  of  slaves. 

The  Moravian  minister  and  his  wife,  the  parents 
of  our  poet,  heard  the  call.  They  resolved  to  go  to 
the  West  Indies,  and  leave  their  sons,  James  and  Rob- 
ert, "to  God  and  the  Moravian  brethren."  They 
soon  found  the  martyrdom  they  expected. 

"My  father  bowed  his  aching  head 
About  my  mother's  dying  bed; 
From  lip  to  lip,  from  heart  to  heart, 
Passed  the  few  parting  words — '  We  part,' 
But  echoed  back,  though  unexpressed, 
'  We  meet  again  !'  rose  on  each  breast. 


140  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Amid  the  elemental  strife, 

That  was  the  brightest  hour  of  life: 

Eternity  outshone  the  tomb, 

The  power  of  God  was  in  the  room." 

That  poet  was  James  Montgomery.  His  Moravian 
father  and  mother,  who  sleep  in  unmarked  graves,  did 
not  trust  him  to  Providence  in  vain.  He  grew  up  to 
sing  the  songs  of  the  missionary  church  for  all  time, 
and  when  he  was  borne  to  his  grave  a  great  city 
silenced  its  business,  and  the  titled  and  the  poor  alike 
filled  the  streets  with  uncovered  heads. 

There  are  many  honored  spots  in  England  and 
Scotland,  but  few  that  gather  to  themselves  holier 
associations  than  the  old  cottage  at  Ayrshire,  the 
birthplace  of  James  and  Robert  Montgomery. 


"ONE  SWEETLY  SOLEMN  THOUGHT!' 

DR.   EBKN  TOURJEE,    1834. 

This  simple,  beautiful,  and  sympathetic  melody 
was  composed  by  Dr.  Eben  Tourjee.  It  is  often  sung 
on  funeral  occasions.  It  was  written  about  the  year 
1873,  in  one  of  the  rooms  of  the  building  of  the  Bos- 
ton Music  Hall,  where  the  New  England  Conserva- 
tory of  Music  was  first  established.  Dr.  Tourjee  was 
impressed  with  the  spiritual  beauty  of  the  words  of 
the  hymn,  which  had  been  set  to  light  music.  He 
said,  "That  hymn  ought  to  have  a  more  serious  set- 
ting," and  produced  this  tune  whose  sentiment  so  well 
fits  the  words. 


"ONWARD,  CHRISTIAN  SOLDIERS."       141 

"ONLY  remembered:' 

P.   P.    BLISS,    183S-1876.      WORDS   BY   DR.    BONAR. 

Mr.  Bliss  wrote  a  number  of  tunes  to  other  words 
than  his  own.  Among  them  are  "What  hast  thou 
done  for  Me?"  by  Frances  Ridley  Havergal  ;  "What 
shall  the  harvest  be?"  by  Mrs.  Emily  L.  Oakey; 
"Precious  promise,"  by  Nathaniel  Niles;  "Etern- 
ity," by  Ellen  H.  Gates;  "Arise  and  shine,"  by  Mary 
A.  Lathbury;  "It  is  well  with  my  soul,"  by  H.  G. 

Spofford. 

♦ 

"ONWARD,  CHRISTIAN  SOLDIERS." 

SIR   ARTHUR   S.    SULLIVAN,    1842. 

Author  of  much  light  music  and  several  sacred 
cantatas;  born  in  London,  1842.  He  was  one  of  the 
first  composers  to  depart  from  the  old  style  of  setting 
all  the  stanzas  of  a  hymn  to  the  same  music.  His 
most  popular  sacred  compositions  are  "The  Prodigal 
Son"  and  "The  Light  of  the  World." 

Mr.  Stanley,  in  his  "Dark  Continent,"  gives  a 
touching  illustration  of  the  influence  of  souq-s  when 
the  mind  is  troubled  or  depressed.  The  party  had 
been  in  great  danger,  and  had  passed  through  severe 
fighting.  Frank  Pocock,  the  sunniest  of  them  all, 
and  the  best  loved,  broke  into  a  strain  of  singing: 

"The  true  home-land  !     I  long  to  meet 
Those  who  have  gone  before ; 
The  weeping  eyes  and  weary  feet 
Rest  on  that  happy  shore." 


142  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Mr.  Stanley  said,  "Frank,  you  will  make  every 
boy  cry  with  such  tunes  as  that.  Choose  some  heroic 
tune." 

"All  right,  sir,"  he  replied,  with  a  bright  face, 
and  struck  up — 

"  Brightly  gleams  our  banner, 
Pointing  to  the  sky, 
Waving  wanderers  onward 
To  their  home  on  high." 

"Ah,  Frank,"  said  Mr.  Stanley,  "it  isn't  the 
heavenward  way  you  mean,  is  it?  I  should  think  you 
would  prefer  the  homeward  way." 

"  How  do  you  like  this,  sir? 

"  '  My  God,  my  Father,  while  I  stray 

Far  from  my  home,  on  life's  rough  way, 
Oh,  teach  me  from  my  heart  to  say, 
Thy  will  be  done.'  " 

"Frank,  you  are  thinking  too  much  of  the  poor 
fellows  we  have  lately  lost.  Sing,  my  dear  Frank, 
your  best  song." 

He  responded  by  singing — 

"Onward,  Christian  soldiers, 
Marching  as  to  war, 
With  the  cross  of  Jesus 
Going  on  before." 

Mr.  Stanley  adds,  "I  saw  that  he  was  in  a  serious 
and  religious  vein  of  mind,  and  refrained  from  dis- 
turbing him  farther."  "Youth's  companion." 


"0  PARADISE!"  143 

"(9  PARADISE!" 

JOSEPH   BARNBY,   1838. 

The  words  of  this  hymn,  beginning, 

"  O  Paradise,  O  Paradise  ! 

Who  doth  not  crave  for  rest  ? 
Who  would  not  seek  the  happy  land 

Where  they  that  loved  are  blest; 
Where  loyal  hearts  and  true 

Stand  ever  in  the  light, 
All  rapture  through  and  through, 

In  God's  most  holy  sight?" 

were  by  F.  W.  Faber. 

The  author  of  the  tune,  Joseph  Barnby,  an  English 
composer,  born  in  York,  1838,  an  active  worker  in  the 
advancement  of  musical  art,  has  been  connected  with 
the  leading  musical  movements  of  the  time.  One  of 
the  most  popular  writers  of  music,  and  a  represen- 
tative leader,  he  yet  holds  music  to  be  a  servant  of 
religion,  and  maintains  that  its  influence  in  helping 
the  spiritual  life  is  a  first  consideration.  At  the 
Church  Congress  in  Bath,  England,  in  1873,  he 
claimed  that  each  church  should  secure  for  itself  that 
style  of  music  which  is  most  in  harmony  with  the 
culture  and  tastes  of  the  people  and  best  expresses 
and  promotes  true  spiritual  worship.  On  one  point 
he  well  says,  "  But  of  all  the  errors  the  worst  is  per- 
petrated in  the  endeavor  to  draw  a  new  congregation 
to  a  church,  or  to  fill  up  the  thinned  ranks  of  a  de- 
creasing flock,  by  the  exhibition  of  startling  novelties, 
and  what  I  should  term  a  musical  tour  dc  force.     The 


144  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

evil  of  making  the  musical  part  of  the  service  a  means 
of  counteracting  the  deficiencies  of  the  rest,  strikes  at 
the  very  root  of  church  morals.  No  one,  I  am  sure, 
will  suspect  me  of  depreciating  my  art  or  of  holding 
music  in  anything  but  the  highest  honor.  But  for 
that  very  reason  I  should  wish  music  to  occupy  its 
rightful  place,  and  no  other;  nor  can  I  see  aught  but 
disadvantage  and  ultimate  failure  in  the  attempt  to 
make  the  musical  part  of  the  church  service  more 
than  an  accessory,  to  be  regulated  by  the  precept  that 
enjoins  the  doing  of  all  things  connected  with  public 
worship  'decently  and  in  order.'  " 


ORTONVILLE. 

DR.   THOMAS   HASTINGS,    1784-1872. 

Dr.  Thomas  Hastings,  the  author  of  some  six 
hundred  hymns,  and  the  compiler  of  many  popular 
church  music  books,  was  also  distinguished  as  a  com- 
poser of  hymn-tunes.  He  was  born  in  1784  at  Wash- 
ington, and  gave  his  life  to  church  music.  In  1832, 
upon  the  invitation  of  twelve  New  York  churches,  he 
made  his  home  in  the  city  of  New  York.  He  lived 
to  be  nearly  ninety  years  of  age. 

Dr.  Hastings  was  the  author  of  the  popular  tune 
"Zion"  ("On  the  mountain-top  appearing")  and  of 
one  ("Toplady")  of  the  several  well  known  tunes  of 
"Rock  of  Ages,"  also  of  numerous  other  sweet  and 
popular  tunes. 


"6>  SACKED  HEAD!  NOW  WOUNDED"     145 
"O  SACKED  HEAD!  NOW  WOUNDED." 

ARRANGED   BY  JOHANN   SEBASTIAN   BACH,    1685-1750. 

The  music  in  A  minor  was  adapted  from  a  secular 
song  by  Hans  Georg  Hassler,  1564-1612.  He  was  a 
German  organist.  It  was  harmonized  by  Johann  Se- 
bastian Bach  in  1729,  and  introduced  into  the  Passion 
music. 

The  original  German  hymn,  uO  Haupt  voll  Blut 
und  Wunden,"  was  written  in  1659  by  Paul  Gerhardt, 
about  whom  a  beautiful  story  is  told  in  reference  to 
his  hymn  of  trust.  (See  "Story  of  the  Hymns.") 
The  story,  like  most  legends  of  the  kind,  has  been 
questioned,  as  it  is  claimed  by  a  critic  that  Gerhardt 
was  not  out  of  favor  with  the  court  at  the  time  when 
he  wrote  the  hymn. 

uO  sacred  Head!  now  wounded,"  was  founded 
on  the  original  Latin  hymn  of  St.  Bernard,  "con- 
taining five  verses  of  ten  lines  each,  addressed  Kad 
facicm  Christi  in  cruce  pendentisj  the  best  of  Bernard's 
seven  passion -hymns.  'This  classical  hymn  has 
shown  an  imperishable  vitality,'  says  SchafT  ('Christ 
in  Song'),  'in  passing  from  the  Latin  to  the  German, 
and  from  the  German  into  the  English,  and  proclaim- 
ing in  three  tongues,  and  in  the  name  of  three  con- 
fessions, with  equal  effect,  the  dying  love  of  our  Sa- 
viour and  our  boundless  indebtedness  to  him.'  Alex- 
ander's translation  consists  of  ten  eight-line  verses. 

"St.  Bernard,  the  'best  and  greatest  man  of  his 
age,'  who  is  distinguished   as   St.    Bernard  of  Clair- 

Tlie  Story  of  the  Times.  7 


146  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

vaux,  was  born  in  Fontaine,  Burgundy,  in  1091.  His 
father  was  a  nobleman.  He  was  educated  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  Paris,  and  entered,  at  the  age  of  twenty-two, 
the  Cistercian  monastery  of  Citeaux,  in  Burgundy. 
By  means  of  the  remarkable  influence  over  others 
which  afterwards  so  distinguished  him,  he  induced 
his  five  brothers  and  several  companions  to  enter  the 
monastic  life.  At  the  age  of  twenty-five  he  was  ap- 
pointed abbot  of  a  new  monastery  at  Clairvaux,  in 
Champagne.  This  position  he  continued  to  hold, 
though  high  preferment  was  repeatedly  offered  him. 
Kings  and  popes  not  seldom  made  him  a  court  of 
appeal  and  yielded  to  his  decisions.  Six  councils  of 
the  church  are  attributed  to  him.  It  was  through  his 
persuasion  that  the  king  of  France  undertook  the 
crusade  of  the  year  1146.  Luther  calls  him  '  the  best 
monk  that  ever  lived.'  He  was  a  great  theologian, 
following  Augustine  in  his  doctrines.  His  works  are 
numerous  and  varied  in  character.     He  died  in  1153. 

"Paul  Gerhard t  was  born  in  Saxony  in  1606. 
Studying  during  the  time  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War, 
he  did  not  enter  on  his  ministry  till  the  war  was  at  an 
end.  His  first  pastorate  was  at  Mittenwalde,  whither 
he  went  in  1651.  In  1657  he  removed  to  St.  Nich- 
olas' Church,  Berlin.  There  he  became  known  as  a 
hymn -writer,  and  published  his  first  collection  in 
1666.  As  a  preacher  and  pastor  he  was  held  in  high 
honor.  In  1666  he  was  deposed  from  his  spiritual 
office  because  of  his  unyielding  adherence  to  Luth- 
eran doctrine.     He  also  suffered  severely  from  domes- 


PALESTRINA.  147 

tic  bereavement.  In  1668  he  became  archdeacon  in 
Liibben,  Saxony,  where  he  remained  till  his  death  in 
1676.  He  left  123  hymns.  In  German  sacred  poetry 
of  the  older  school  Gerhardt  ranks  next  to  Luther. 
ScharT  terms  him  'the  prince  of  German  hymnists.' 
His  hymns,  which  are  the  expression  of  a  simple  but 
sublime  faith  in  God,  combine  simplicity  with  depth 
and  force.  His  portrait,  in  the  church  of  Liibben, 
bears  the  inscription,  '  Theologus  in  cribro  Satanae 
versatus;'  i.  e.,  'A  divine  sifted  in  Satan's  sieve.'  " 


PALESTRINA. 


GIOVANNI   PALESTRINA,    1 524-1594. 

There  is  a  spiritual  beauty  about  the  life  of  Pales- 
trina  that  gives  sympathy  and  color  to  his  music, 
which  was  always  written  to  help  the  aspirations  of 
the  soul.  His  life,  like  Dante's,  was  a  case  of  moral 
recovery.  He  was  born  in  Italy,  about  the  year  1524. 
He  became  a  famous  composer  of  songs  for  the  popular 
taste.  u  In  former  years,"  he  once  said,  "I  threw 
away  my  songs  and  poems  on  unholy  and  idolatrous 
love,  and  feel  ashamed  of  it."  He  turned  away  his 
thoughts  and  aims  from  the  gay  world  towards  the 
spiritual  life  and  its  hopes  and  promises,  and  became 
the  founder  of  the  Italian  school  of  religious  music. 
He  gave  his  genius  wholly  to  the  Latin  Church  and  to 
religious  themes.  He  became  greatly  honored  by  the 
dignitaries  of  the  church  and  beloved  in  Rome  and 
Italy. 


148      THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

The  following  account  of  his  death  and  burial 
affords  a  picture  of  the  fruits  of  his  consecrated  life: 

4 'February  2,  1594.  This  morning  died  the  most 
excellent  musician,  Signor  Giovanni  Palestrina,  our 
dear  companion,  and  maestro  di  capella  of  St.  Peter's 
Church,  where  his  funeral  was  attended,  not  only  by 
all  the  musicians  of  Rome,  but  by  an  infinite  concourse 
of  people,  when  ^  Libera  me,  Dominef  was  sung  by  the 
whole  college." 

No  change  of  time  shall  ever  shock 

My  trust,  O  Lord,  in  thee  ; 
For  thou  hast  always  been  my  Rock, 

A  sure  defence  to  me. 

Thou  my  deliverer  art,  O  God  ; 

My  trust  is  in  thy  power  : 
Thou  art  my  Shield  from  foes  abroad, 

My  Safeguard  and  my  Tower. 

Then  let  Jehovah  be  adored, 

On  whom  our  hopes  depend  ; 
For  who,  except  the  mighty  Lord, 

His  people  can  defend? 


PALM  BRANCHES. 

JEAN   BATISTE   FAURE,  ABOUT   1844. 

In  the  early  part  of  the  present  century  an  almost 
unknown  boy  was  found  drawing  crowds  around  him 
in  the  streets  of  Paris  by  his  marvellous  voice.  He 
found  friends  and  received  an  education  at  the  Conser- 
vatoire. His  voice  became  more  pure,  sympathetic, 
and  beautiful,  and  was  greatly  applauded  wherever  it 


PLEYELS  HYMN.  149 

was  heard.  Every  one  said  that  there  was  a  fortune  in 
it,  and  the  youth  deemed  himself  the  possessor  of  the 
key  to  wealth.  In  the  midst  of  his  early  triumphs  he 
lost  his  wonderful  voice,  and  thought  that  the  mission 
for  which  he  had  seemed  destined  was  closed  to  him. 
Mouths  passed,  but  his  voice  did  not  return,  and  he 
gave  himself  up  to  the  study  of  instrumental  music,  a 
disappointed  man.  He  longed  for  his  voice  and  for  his 
former  influence  again. 

One  day  his  thoughts  turned  to  prayer.  "Give 
me  back  my  voice,"  he  prayed,  "and  I  will  use  it  for 
charity  and  for  good,  and  I  will  daily  visit  the 
church."  His  voice  began  to  return,  and  he  became 
the  great  church  singer  of  Paris  and  the  famous  bari- 
tone of  Europe.  He  never  forgot  his  vow,  but  has 
given  his  voice  to  charity.  He  himself  has  written  an 
ode  to  charity  which  has  been  sung  in  all  lands;  it  is 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  songs  of  the  century. 

The  man  whose  history  we  have  outlined  is  Jean 
Batiste  Faure,  the  author  of  "  Palm  Branches,"  which 
the  church  numbers  among  its  musical  treasures. 


PLEYELS  HYMN. 

IGNATIUS   PLEYEL,   1757-1851. 


One  of  the  hymns  most   frequently  sung  to  this 
tune  is  that  beginning, 

"Children  of  the  heavenly  King!" 


150  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

PORTUGUESE  HYMN. 


SEE    ADESTE   FIDELES. 


"PULL  FOR  THE  SHORE." 

P.    P.    BLISS,  1838-1876. 

A  popular  hymn  on  the  sea.  It  was  suggested 
by  the  following  incident  in  "Things  New  and 
Old." 

"  We  watched  the  wreck  with  great  anxiety.  The 
life-boat  had  been  out  some  hours,  but  could  not  reach 
the  vessel  through  the  great  breakers  that  raged  and 
foamed  on  the  sand-bank.  The  boat  appeared  to  be 
leaving  the  crew  to  perish.  But  in  a  few  minutes  the 
captain  and  sixteen  sailors  were  taken  off,  and  the  ves- 
sel went  down. 

"  '  When  the  life-boat  came  to  you,  did  you  expect 
it  had  brought  some  tools  to  repair  your  old  ship  ?'  I 
said. 

u  *  Oh,  no,  she  was  a  total  wreck.  Two  of  her 
masts  were  gone,  and  if  we  had  stayed  mending  her 
only  a  few  minutes,  we  must  have  gone  down,  sir.' 

"'When  once  off  the  old  wreck  and  safe  in  the 
life-boat,  what  remained  for  you  to  do?' 

"  '  Nothing,  sir,  but  just  to  pull  for  the  shore.'  " 

"Therefore,  if  any  man  be  in  Christ,  he  is  a  new 
creature  :  old  things  are  passed  away  ;  behold,  all 
things  are  become  new." 


"RESCUE  THE  PERISHING."  151 

REDEMPTION  HYMN. 

J.  C.   D.   PARKER,   1828. 

James  C.  D.  Parker  was  born  in  Boston,  1828, 
and  graduated  at  Harvard  College.  He  had  an  ardent 
love  for  music  when  young,  but  studied  law.  Subse- 
quently, however,  he  returned  to  the  profession  for 
which  he  had  early  shown  a  preference.  After  study- 
ing at  Leipzig  he  returned  to  Boston,  and  became 
the  organist  of  Trinity  Church.  The  "Redemption 
Hymn  "  was  composed  in  1877,  and  was  first  given  by 
the  Handel  and  Haydn  Society. 


"RESCUE  THE  PERISHING:' 

WILLIAM   HOWARD   DOANE.  MUS.  DOC.    1831. 

Dr.  Doane  was  born  1831.  He  is  a  Baptist,  lives 
in  one  of  the  beautiful  suburbs  of  Cincinnati,  and  has 
long  been  a  contributor  to  the  musical  publications  of 
Biglow  &  Main.  His  gospel  hymn-tune  "I  love  to 
tell  the  story"  is  universally  known. 

He  has  done  some  of  his  most  successful  work  in 
association  with  "Fanny  Crosby,"  the  blind  writer  of 
gospel  hymns,  also  a  frequent  contributor  to  the  musi- 
cal publications  of  Biglow  &  Main.  It  was  he  who 
suggested  to  her  the  hymn  theme,  "Safe  in  the  arms 
of  Jesus,"  and  he  wrote  the  music  for  it. 

Mrs.  Frances  Jane  (Crosby)  Van  Alstyne  was  born 
at  South-East,  N.  Y.,  in  1823.      At  the  age  of  six  she 


152  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

lost  her  sight  through  wrong  medical  treatment  of  a 
trouble  with  her  eyes.  She  became  an  inmate  of  the 
New  York  Institution  for  the  Blind  and  a  teacher  in 
the  same  institution. 

She  wrote  many  popular  songs  for  Dr.  George  F. 
Root,  among  them  "  Hazel  dell,"  "There's  music  in 
the  air,"  and  "  Rosalie,  the  prairie  flower,"  also  words 
for  cantatas.  She  has  written  some  five  thousand 
Sunday-school  songs,  some  of  which  are  very  widely 
known.  "  Safe  in  the  arms  of  Jesus  "  was  written  in 
some  twenty  minutes. 

"Rescue  the  perishing"  has  become  the  favorite 
song  of  workers  among  the  tempted  and  unschooled 
classes  in  all  Christian  lands. 

A  writer  in  the  New  York  "  Evangelist "  gives  the 
following  interesting  picture  of  Miss  Crosby  and  her 
work : 

Miss  Crosby  says  of  all  the  hymns  she  has  written, 
"  Safe  in  the  arms  of  Jesus  "  is  her  favorite.     To  be 

"  Safe  in  the  arms  of  Jesus, 
Safe  on  his  gentle  breast," 

must  be  to  her,  as  she  tries  to  feel  her  way  through 
the  darkness  and  amid  danger,  a  sweet  protecting  rest 
to  look  forward  to.  To  many  a  sorrowing  soul  whose 
eye  of  faith  has  become  dim  by  the  mysterious  going 
away  of  some  loved  one,  has  this  hymn  brought  com- 
fort and  life.  To  feel  that  our  loved  ones  are  "safe 
in  the  arms  of  Jesus"  is  indeed  a  precious  thought. 
Walking  through  a  village  cemetery  a  few  months 
since,  I  heard  some  sweet  voices  singing  that  hymn. 


u  RESCUE  THE  PERISHING."  153 

It  was  beside  a  baby's  new-made  grave.  Just  as  the 
young  mother  was  turning  away  with  tearful  eyes 
from  the  resting-place  of  her  little  one,  these  sweet 
words  burst  upon  her  ear.  Out  of  her  own  loving 
arms,  but  safe  in  the  arms  of  Jesus.  How  many  other 
hearts  have  found  comfort  in  that  assurance,  and  in 
the  thought  that  by-and-by — 

"  There  by  his  love  o'ershaded, 
Sweetly  my  soul  shall  rest."  , 

You  would  naturally  suppose  that  such  a  person 
must  be  very  unhappy  and  gloomy,  but  Fanny  Crosby 
is  one  of  the  most  cheerful,  happy  persons  in  the 
world.  When  we  saw  her  she  was  knitting  an  intri- 
cate piece  of  lace,  which,  on  examination,  was  found 
not  to  have  a  misplaced  stitch  in  it.  Her  fingers 
moved  busily  while  she  talked  in  a  modest  way  of  the 
talent  God  had  given  her,  and  what  a  comfort  it  had 
been  to  her  that  she  had  been  enabled  to  write  words 
that  had  helped  other  souls  on  to  heaven.  Her  whole 
face  was  illumined  with  a  light  reflected  from  His  face 
(so  we  thought)  as  she  told  us  the  story  of  "Rescue 
the  perishing,"  and  the  satisfaction  it  gave  her  to 
know  it  had  been  the  means  of  bringing  many  wan- 
dering ones  home  to  God.  In  a  mission  meeting  she 
attended  one  evening  the  hymn  was  sung,  and  at  its 
close  a  young  man  arose  and  said  that  that  hymn 
brought  him  to  Jesus.  Then  he  told  of  his  wander- 
ings, and  how  he  had  wasted  his  time  and  money  in 
drink  and  those  other  vices  that  are  sure  to  follow; 
but  passing  along  the  street  one  night  without  a  cent 

7* 


i54  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

in   his   pocket,   ragged,   cold,  and  hungry,   he   heard 

some  voices  singing: 

"  Rescue  the  perishing, 
Care  for  the  dying, 
Snatch  them  in  pity 
From  sin  and  the  grave." 

He  followed  the  sound  of  the  voices  until  he  came  to 

a  building  where  there  was  a  mission  meeting.     He 

went  in  and  sat  down  in  the  back  seat  and  listened 

to  the  words  of  that  hymn.      "I  was  just  ready   to 

perish  that  night,"  he  said,  "but  that  hymn  by  the 

grace  of  God  saved  me."     Loving  hands  ministered 

to  him  in  Jesus'  name  after  he  had  told  them  that  he 

wanted  to  leave  the  evil  life  and  become  a  good  man. 

The  workers  for   Christ   "wept  o'er  the  erring  one, 

lifted  the  fallen,  and  told  him  of  Jesus,  the  mighty  to 

save." 

When  the  young  man  finished  his  story  he  said, 
that  he  had  a  great  desire  to  meet  the  writer  of  that 
hymn  and  tell  her  what  it  had  done  for  his  soul.  It 
was  a  singular  coincidence  that  his  wish  was  to  be 
gratified  that  very  night,  and  what  a  great  joy  must 
have  filled  the  author's  heart  when  she  was  led  up  to 
the  speaker  and  could  take  his  hand  and  say,  "I 
wrote  that  hymn." 

After  a  day's  jostling  through  the  city  streets, 
guided  by  some  loving  hand,  when  Miss  Crosby  re- 
turns to  her  quiet  room  it  is  not  strange  that  she  pours 
forth  her  soul  in  song.  It  was  at  such  times  as  those 
that  she  wrote 

"All  the  way  my  Saviour  leads  me," 


and 


RETREAT. 

"  Saviour,  more  than  life  to  me, 
I  am  clinging  close  to  thee," 

"  Through  this  changing  world  below 
Lead  me  gently  as  I  go." 


00 


REST  FOR  THE  WEARY. 


REV.    \VM.    MCDONALD. 


The  music  is  by  Rev.  Wm.  McDonald,  of  the 
"Christian  Witness,"  and  the  author  of  the  popular 
revival  hymn  "I  am  coming  to  the  cross"  ('lI  am 
trusting,  Lord,  in  thee").  The  author  heard  the  re- 
frain words,  "There  is  rest  for  the  weary,"  at_  a  reli- 
gious meeting  in  Portland,  Me.,  and  was  inspired  by 
them  to  write  the  tune.  Finding  a  hymn  by  an  un- 
known author  (Rev.  Mr.  Harmer),  he  set  it  to  this 
tune,  with  the  refrain  "There  is  rest  for  the  weary." 
It  was  published  as  a  leaflet,  and  some  300,000  copies 
were  used.  The  author  of  the  tune  has  heard  it  suns: 
in  most  parts  of  the  world  and  among  the  missions  of 
India. 


RETREAT. 

DR.   T.   HASTINGS,    1784-1S72.. 

OF  all  the  innocent  blood  shed  in  the  "  Cawnpore 
Massacre"  (1858)  by  the  brutal  Nana  Sahib,  none 
cried  more  loudly  to  heaven  than  that  of  the  eight 
Christian  missionaries  and  two  little  children  who 
had  fled  for  safety  from  Futtighur  down  the  Ganges. 


156  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

On  the  fifth  day  of  their  flight,  after  passing 
through  fearful  peril  and  even  receiving  bullet 
wounds  from  Sepoy  enemies  on  the  shore,  the  little 
party  became  wearied  out  by  the  difficulties  of  a  shal- 
low current,  and  moored  their  boats  under  an  island 
six  miles  above  their  destination.  There  they  learned 
to  their  horror  that  the  English  fort  at  Cawnpore, 
where  they  expected  to  find  refuge,  was  surrounded  by 
an  army  of  traitors,  and  all  hope  of  reaching  their 
friends  was  cut  off. 

Soon  after  they  were  fired  upon  by  a  gang  of  Sepoy 
rebels,  and  driven  from  their  boats  to  seek  shelter  on 
the  island.  The  trees  and  the  long  grass  concealed 
them,  but  only  for  a  little  while. 

Distressed  with  heat  and  thirst  and  spent  with 
continual  alarm,  they  believed  their  last  day  had 
come,  for  they  knew  the  bloodthirsty  Sepoys  would 
pursue  them  to  the  death.  They  could  only  look  up 
to  God  for  strength  to  meet  their  fate  with  martyr 
resignation.  Earth  was  fading  now,  and  heaven  was 
near. 

Who  but  the  believer  in  Christ  can  understand 
what  lifts  the  soul,  in  terror's  supreme  moment,  above 
all  the  powers  of  them  that  kill  the  body  ?  The  oldest 
missionary  read  some  passages  from  his  pocket  Bible, 
and  then  all  joined  in  singing  a  hymn: 

From  every  stormy  wind  that  blows, 
From  every  swelling  tide  of  woes, 
There  is  a  calm,. a  sure  retreat ; 
'T  is  found  beneath  the  mercv-seat. 


RETREAT.  157 

Ah,  whither  could  we  flee  for  aid 
When  tempted,  desolate,  dismayed, 
Or  how  the  hosts  of  hell  defeat, 
Had  suffering  saints  no  mercy-seat? 

There,  there,  on  eagle  wings  we  soar, 
And  sin  and  sense  molest  no  more  : 
And  heaven  comes  down  our  soul  to  greet, 
While  glory  crowns  the  mercy-scat. 

Then  they  spoke  together  of  Jesus  and  the  riches  of 
his  grace,  and  prayed  to  the  dear  Friend  whom  now 
they  expected  so  soon  to  see.  The  party  were  at 
prayers  when  the  Sepoys  seized  them  and  dragged 
them  from  their  hiding-place.  They  were  tied  with 
cords  and  taken  away  to  Nana  Sahib,  at  Cawnpore. 

One  of  the  children,  little  Willie  Campbell,  asked 
in  a  frightened  voice,  "Pa,  what  are  these  men  go- 
ing to  do  with  you  and  ma  and  sister  and  the  rest  of 
us?" 

The  innocent  question  made  tears  flow  from  the 
sufferers'  eyes.  They  were  confined  over  night  in  a 
dismal  prison,  and  in  the  morning  were  marched  out 
by  Nana's  orders  to  the  parade-ground,  the  parents 
holding  their  children  in  their  arms.  The  death-signal 
was  given,  and  the  martyrs  fell,  pierced  with  bullets 
from  the  Sepoys'  muskets. 

These  missionaries  were  all  Americans.  They  were 
Rev.  Albert  O.  Johnson  and  wife,  Rev.  John  E-  Free- 
man and  wife,  David  E-  Campbell  and  wife,  and 
their  two  little  ones,  Fannie  and  Willie,  and  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  McMullin.  They  died  as  their  Master  died, 
praying  for  their  murderers.     They  were  more  to  be 


158  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

envied  than  those  whose  bloody  hands  set  free  their 

souls — 

"  on  eagle  wings  to  soar 
Where  sin  and  sense  molest  no  more." 

"  Youth's  Companion." 


ROCK  OF  AGES. 

SEE   MAJESTY,   TOPLADV,   AND   HASTINGS. 


SAFE  IN  THE  ARMS  OF  JESUS. 

W.   H.   DOANE,  1831. 

Dr.  DoanE  says,  "  'Safe  in  the  arms  of  Jesus'  I 
wrote  in  the  railway  carriage  while  Thane  Miller  and 
myself  were  on  our  way  from  Cincinnati  to  Newark, 
N.  J.,  to  attend  a  national  Sunday-school  convention." 
The  habit  of  composing  hymn-tunes  while  travelling 
is  not  uncommon.  The  Wesleyan  period  is  full  of 
such  examples. 

"It  was  a  singular  tribute  to  the  place  that  gospel 
music  has  taken  in  the  hearts  of  the  people  that  when 
that  solemn  array  which  attended  the  remains  of  Gar- 
field from  the  eastern  porch  of  the  Capitol  was  de- 
scending the  steps,  it  was  not  to  the  '  Dead  March  in 
Saul,*  but  to  the  melody,  by  the  band,  of 

"  '  Safe  in  the  arms  of  Jesus  ' 
and 

" '  Sweet  by-and-by.' 

And  the  authors  of  such  pieces  can  afford  to  let  the 

great  musical  world  laugh,  if  God  has  such  uses  for 

them  in  his  kingdom."  "Golden  Rule." 


SCOTCH  MINOR  TUNES.  159 

SALVE  REGINA:  THE  HYMN  OF  COLUMBUS. 

This  old  Latin  hymn,  though  it  has  no  place  in 
Protestant  hymnology,  has  an  historic  interest  in  our 
country,  because  it  was  sung  every  evening  by  Colum- 
bus and  the  crew  on  his  ship  during  the  first  voyage  of 
discovery.  It  was  the  first  Christmas  song  in  the 
New  World.  The  burden  of  it  was  an  address  to  the 
Virgin  Mary  to  save  the  exiles  on  the  sea. 

The  Virgin  was  believed  by  mystical  Catholics  to 
be  prophesied  in  the  words,  "And  the  gathering  to- 
gether of  the  waters  called  he  seas'1 — Latin  maria. 
Gen.  1 :  10.  Hence  poetic  license  and  superstition 
made  her  the  "star  of  the  deep,"  and  this  tender  fig- 
ure became  the  favorite  theme  of  the  Genoese  sailors. 
uAve,  Maris  Stella"  is  commonly  known  as  "the 
Columbus  hymn,"  although  it  seems  to  have  been  a 

gradual  growth. 

"  Gentle  star  of  ocean, 
Portal  of  the  sky." 

Mrs.  Hemaus'  and  Miss  Browne's  "Ave  Sanctissima  " 
is  really  an  outgrowth  of  the  hymn  of  the  old  Italian 
sailors.  It  is  sometimes  called  "The  Italian  Girls' 
Hymn  to  the  Virgin." 


SCOTCH  MINOR  TUNES. 


The  Scotch  hymn-tunes  and  ballads  best  express  a 
tender  sadness  and  that  retrospective  love  that  soothes 
while  it  brings  tears  to  the  eyes.  Among  these  hymn- 
tunes  are  "Dundee"  (originated  in  music  of  Franck, 


160  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

composer  of  "Old  Hundred"),  "Martyrs,"  and  "El- 
gin." 

"  Perhaps  '  Dundee's  '  wild  warbling  measures  rise, 
Or  plaintive  'Martyrs,'  worthy  of  the  name, 
Or  noble  '  Elgin  '  leads  the  heavenward  flame, 
The  sweetest  far  of  Scotia's  holy  lays." 

The  song  "Ye  banks  and  braes  of  Bonnie  Doon  " 
is  often  used  as  a  hymn-tune,  and  "Auld  I^ang  Syne," 
which  see. 


SEEKING  TO  SA  VE. 

P.  P.  BLISS,  1838-1876. 


Suggested  to  Mr.  Bliss  by  Dr.  Wordsworth,  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  Mobile,  Ala.,  upon  the 
unity  of  the  parables  in  L,uke  15. 


"SHALL  WE  GA  THER  A  T  THE  RIVER  ?" 

REV.  ROBERT  LOVVRY,  D.  D. 

In  response  to  a  letter  of  inquiry  Dr.  L,owry  writes 
in  regard  to  his  tunes: 

41  It  is  not  so  easy  to  find  an  inspiration  for  tunes  as 
for  hymns.  The  latter  are  likely  to  be  the  product  of 
intellectual  suggestion;  the  former,  more  vagrant  and 
spontaneous,  come  often  unbidden,  and  without  being 
able  to  account  for  themselves.  Nevertheless,  tunes 
may  owe  their  life  to  an  occasion,  a  mood,  a  strain,  a 
chord,  a  metrical  line,  and  thus  take  their  place  in 
historv.     For  instance,  'Shall  we  gather  at  the  river?' 


"SHALL  WE  GA  TITER  A  T  THE  RIl  WER  /"   161 

was  the  issue  of  a  mood — words  and  music  struggling 
together  for  birth,  and  so  closely  allied  in  twinship 
that  the  author  never  could  tell  which  was  born  first." 

He  also  furnishes  us  with  the  following  article  by 
another  in  regard  to  his  popular  tunes: 

"Rev.  Robert  Lowry,  D.  D.,  was  born  in  the  city 
of  Philadelphia,  March  12,  1826.  At  the  age  of  seven- 
teen he  joined  the  First  Baptist  Church  of  Philadel- 
phia. In  his  Sunday-school,  as  pupil,  afterwards  as 
chorister  and  teacher,  he  very  early  manifested  a  zeal 
for  religion.  At  the  age  of  twenty-two  he  gave  him- 
self to  the  work  of  the  Christian  ministry,  and  entered 
upon  a  course  of  study  at  the  University  of  Lewis- 
burgh,  Pa.  At  the  age  of  twenty-eight  he  was  grad- 
uated from  this  school  with  the  highest  honors  of  his 
class. 

u  In  the  same  year  he  entered  upon  the  full  work  of 
the  ministry.  He  served  as  pastor  at  Westchester,  Pa., 
1854-58 ;  in  New  York  city,  1858-61  ;  in  Brooklyn, 
1861-69;  Lewisburgh,  Pa.,  1S69-75.  Since  1876  he  has 
been  pastor  of  Park  Avenue  Church,  Plainfield,  N.  J. 
In  each  of  these  fields  his  work  has  been  crowned  with 
marked  success.  While  pastor  at  Lewisburgh  he  was 
also  professor  of  Belles  Lettrcs  in  the  university  there. 
From  this  university  he  received  the  honorary  degree 
of  D.  D.  in  1875. 

"While  he  has  achieved  distinguished  success  and 
stands  eminent  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  he  is  per- 
haps more  widely  known  as  a  composer  of  music.  He 
possesses  marked  genius  in  this  latter  direction,  which 

The  Story  of  the  Tunis. 


1 62      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

manifested  itself  very  early.  Before  he  was  twenty-one 
years  of  age  he  wrote  a  number  of  songs,  which  were 
used  on  special  occasions  in  the  Sunday-school  of 
which  he  was  a  member.  At  the  first  Commencement 
of  his  Alma  Mater  (1851),  he  wrote  the  '  Parting  Song  ' 
for  the  graduating  class — words  and  music — which  was 
sung  by  the  college  choir. 

"His  musical  genius  has  not  remained  inactive, 
though  no  special  pains  have  been  taken  to  secure  its 
highest  development  and  cultivation.  In  connection 
with  his  ministerial  work  he  has  ever  been  closely 
identified  with  the  song  service,  drilling  the  Sunday- 
school,  leading  the  prayer-meeting,  writing  an  anthem 
for  the  choir,  sometimes  preparing  an  entire  musical 
service  for  a  set  occasion.  Many  of  his  hymns  were 
written  after  the  Sunday  evening  service,  when  the 
body  was  weary  with  the  day's  labor  and  the  mind  re- 
fused to  rest. 

"  '  Shall  we  gather '  came  like  an  outburst.  (  Com- 
ing by-and-by '  sprang  from  the  excitement  attending 
a  sermon  he  had  just  preached.  '  Nothing  but  the 
blood  of  Jesus '  was  the  echo  of  a  deep  religious  feel- 
ing in  his  church.  '  Linger  no  longer '  was  only 
repeating  what  he  had  said  so  often  to  inquirers. 
'The  world  is  moving  on,'  came  to  him  in  the  agita- 
tion of  a  great  reform  movement.  '  Oh,  work  while  'tis 
day,'  was  written  for  a  Young  People's  Association. 
(A  brighter  day  is  breaking,'  was  suggested  by  the 
missionary  outlook.  'Where  is  my  boy  to-night?'  was 
the  result  of  a  tender  conversation  concerning  homes 


"SHALL  WE  GA  THER  A  T  THE  RIVER  f"    163 

made  desolate  by  the  drink  evil.  A  large  number  of 
hymns  on  the  Advent  and  the  Resurrection  were  in- 
spired by  the  approach  of  the  Christmas  and  Easter 
festivities. 

"The  hymns  and  music  which  are  most  popular 
with  the  public  are  the  ones  for  which  Mr.  Lowry 
himself  cares  least.  His  favorite  of  all  the  pieces  he 
has  written  is  'Weeping  will  not  save  me.'  He  re- 
gards it  as  being  the  most  evangelical  thing  he  ever 
wrote.     We  give  it  in  full: 

"  Weeping  will  not  save  me — 

Though  my  face  were  bathed  in  tears, 
That  could  not  allay  my  fears, 
Could  not  wash  the  sins  of  years, 
Weeping  will  not  save  me. 

"  Working  will  not  save  me — 
Purest  deeds  that  I  can  do, 
Holiest  thought  and  feeling  too, 
Cannot  form  my  soul  anew, 
Working  will  not  save  me. 

"  Waiting  will  not  save  me — 
Helpless,  guilty,  lost,  I  lie; 
In  my  ear  is  mercy's  cry ; 
If  I  wait  I  can  but  die — 
Waiting  will  not  save  me. 

"Faith  in  Christ  will  save  me — 
Let  me  trust  thy  weeping  Son, 
Trust  the  work  that  He  has  done  ; 
To  His  arms,  Lord,  help  me  run — 
Faith  in  Christ  will  save  me. 

Chorus. 
"Jesus  wept  and  died  for  me ; 
Jesus  suffered  on  the  tree  ; 
Jesus  waits  to  make  me.free  ; 
He  alone  can  save  me." 


1 64  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"  '  Shall  we  gather?'  is,  perhaps  without  question, 
the  most  widely  popular  of  all  his  songs.  Of  this  Mr. 
IyOwry  says,  "It  is  brass-band  music,  has  a  march 
movement,  and  for  that  reason  has  become  popular, 
though  for  myself  I  do  not  think  much  of  it.'  Yet  he 
tells  how  on  several  occasions  he  has  been  deeply 
moved  by  the  singing  of  that  hymn. 

"'Going  from  Harrisburgh  to  Lewisburgh  once, 
I  got  into  a  car  rilled  with  half-drunken  lumbermen. 
Suddenly  one  of  them  struck  up,  "Shall  we  gather 
at  the  river  ?n  and  they  sang  it  over  and  over  again, 
repeating  the  chorus  in  a  wild,  boisterous  way.  I  did 
not  think  so  much  of  the  music  then  as  I  listened  to 
those  singers,  but  I  did  think  that  perhaps  the  spirit  of 
the  hymn,  the  words  so  flippantly  uttered,  might  some- 
how survive,  and  be  carried  forward  into  the  lives  of 
those  careless  men,  and  ultimately  lift  them  upward  to 
the  realization  of  the  hope  expressed  in  my  hymn.  A 
different  appreciation  of  it  was  that  evinced  during  the 
Robert  Raikes  centennial.  I  was  in  London,  and  had 
gone  to  a  meeting  in  the  Old  Bailey  to  see  some  of  the 
most  famous  Sunday-school  workers  in  the  world. 
They  were  present  from  Europe,  Asia,  and  America. 
I  sat  in  a  rear  seat  alone.  After  there  had  been  a 
number  of  addresses  delivered  in  various  languages,  I 
was  preparing  to  leave,  when  the  chairman  of  the 
meeting  announced  that  the  author  of  "Shall  we 
gather  at  the  river?"  was  present,  and  I  was  requested 
by  name  to  come  forward.  Men  applauded  and  women 
waved  their  handkerchiefs  as  I  went  to  the  platform. 


"SHALL  WE  GA  THER  A  T  THE  RIVER  t"   165 

It  was  a  tribute  to  the  hymn;  but  I  felt  after  it  was 
over  that  I  had  perhaps  done  some  little  good  in  the 
world,  and  I  felt  more  than  ever  content  to  die  when 
God  should  call.' 

"On  'Children's  Day'  in  Brooklyn,  in  1865,  this 
song  was  sung  by  over  40,000  voices. 

"We  find  in  Mr.  Lowry's  songs  the  expression  of 
earnest,  deep  devotion  :  we  feel  through  them  the 
throbs  of  a  warm,  tender  heart.  The  spirit  of  his 
hymns  draws  us  close  to  him  and  makes  us  feel  akin. 
For  what  he  is  in  himself  we  learn  to  love  him.  For 
what  he  has  done  for  us  through  his  songs  in  heighten- 
ing our  aspirations  and  quickening  our  joys  we  cherish 
a  heartfelt  gratitude. 

"One  expression  from  Mr.  L,owry  gives  us  the 
highest  possible  admiration  of  his  character.  He  says, 
1  Music  with  me  has  been  a  side  issue,  an  efflorescence, 
while  preaching  has  been  my  fruitage.  I  had  rather 
preach  a  gospel  sermon  to  an  appreciative,  receptive 
congregation  than  write  a  hymn.  I  have  always 
looked  upon  myself  as  a  preacher,  and  I  felt  a  sort 
of  meanness  when  I  began  to  be  known  as  a  composer. ' 

"This  expression  seems  extraordinary.  It  is  a 
great  thing  to  write  the  hymns  of  a  people — to  be  able 
to  express  the  gospel  in  songs  that  will  go  all  around 
the  world  and  stir  the  hearts  of  millions.  One  of  the 
most  distinguished  ministers  of  Virginia  has  said,  '  I 
would  rather  be  the  author  of  that  hymn,  "  Shall  we 
gather?"  than  to  be  the  preacher  of  all  the  sermons  I 
have  ever  heard  or  ever  delivered.'     Mr.   Lowry  will 


166  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

doubtless  continue  to  preach  the  gospel  in  his  hymns 
long  after  his  sermons  have  been  almost  forgotten,  and 
that,  too,  to  thousands  who  have  never  known  him  as 
a  preacher.  But  he  esteems  the  preaching  of  the  gos- 
pel the  most  exalted  calling  among  men.  He  who  has 
received  this  calling  of  God  can  wish  for  no  nobler 
service,  and  faithfulness  in  this  service  secures  the 
highest  possible  reward." 


SHINING  SHORE. 

DR.  GEORGE   F.  ROOT,    1820. 

The  "Shining  shore"  originated  in  the  following 
manner.  One  day  in  1856  when  Dr.  Root  was  com- 
posing and  compiling  a  music  book  at  his  old  home, 
his  mother  came  to  him  quietly  and  laid  before  him  a 
newspaper,  in  the  poetical  column  of  which  were  the 
words  of  that  hymn.  "There  are  some  words,  George, 
that  I  would  like  you  to  set  to  music,"  she  said.  Dr. 
Root  wrote  the  music,  put  it  aside,  and  nearly  forgot  the 
circumstance.  Some  time  afterward,  needing  or  being 
asked  for  something  for  a  new  book,  he  recalled  the 
circumstance  and  the  music.  He  published  it,  and  it 
flew  over  the  world. 

Dr.  Root  was  born  at  Sheffield,  Mass.,  1820,  the 
eldest  of  a  family  of  eight  children.  His  youth  was 
spent  on  a  farm,  where  his  heart  was  filled  with 
music.  He  went  to  Boston  as  a  pupil  and  became  a 
teacher  there   and    the  director  of  music   in  Winter 


SI  LOAM.  167 

Street  and  Park  Street  churches.  He  afterwards,  un- 
der the  influence  of  Jacob  Abbott,  went  to  New  York 
as  a  teacher,  and  there  had  charge  of  the  music  in 
Dr.  Deems'  Church  of  the  Strangers.  He  studied  a 
year  in  Europe,  and  in  the  summer  of  1852  founded 
the  Normal  Musical  Institute,  New  York,  the  faculty 
consisting  of  Dr.  Thomas  Hastings,  Dr.  Lowell  Ma- 
son, Wm.  B.  Bradbury,  and  Dr.  Root.  His  cantatas 
have  been  very  popular,  especially  "The  Haymak- 
ers," which  is  distinctively  American,  representing 
life  in  a  hayfield  on  a  summer  day,  and  "Under  the 
Palms,"  of  which  some  30,000  copies  have  been  sold 
in  London  alone. 


SICIL  Y. 

SEE   GREENVILLE. 

SILO  AM. 

I.    B.    WOODBURY,   1819-1858. 

I.  B.  Woodbury,  author  of  the  hymn-tune  "Si- 
loam,"  which  has  become  a  universal  favorite,  and 
also  of  the  hymn-tunes  "Rakem,"  "Eucharist,"  "Sa- 
lena,"  "Tamar,"  and  "Ozrem,"  belongs  to  the  school 
of  popular  gospel  musicians  already  referred  to  in  con- 
nection with  Dr.  Doane  (author  of  the  tune  "Safe  in 
the  arms  of  Jesus")  and  entered  into  their  convention 
system  of  work. 

He  was  born  in    Beverly,  Mass.,  1819.       He  was 


i68      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

apprenticed  to  a  blacksmith  in  Boston,  and  musical 
inspiration  came  to  him  at  the  forge.  He  found  his 
way  to  Europe,  studied,  returned  to  sing  his  life-songs, 
and  died  in  the  South  at  the  early  age  of  thirty-nine. 


ST.    ANDREW'S. 

BARNBY,  1S38.      SEE  "  O  PARADISE  !' 


.ST.    MARTIN'S. 

WILLIAM  TANSUR,  1699-1770. 

This  grand  old  tune,  often  sung  at  College  Com- 
mencements to  the  words  "Let  children  hear  the 
mighty  deeds  which  God  performed  of  old,"  was  writ- 
ten by  William  Tansur,  who  was  born  in  England,  in 
1699,  and  died  at  about  1770.  His  son  was  a  chorister 
in  Trinity  College,  Cambridge,  England. 


S WEE T  BY- A ND-B Y. 

J.    P.    WEBSTER,     1819-1875. 


One  of  the  most  popular  religious  ballads  ever 
written.  The  words  are  by  S.  F.  Bennett,  1836.  The 
music  was  written  by  Air.  Webster  in  1868. 


SWEET  HOUR  OF  PR  A  YER. 

W.    B.    BRADBURY,    1816-1868. 


TALUS'  EVENING  HYMN.  169 

TALUS'  EVENING  HYMN. 

MUSIC  BY  THOMAS  TALL1S,  —  I5S5.      WORDS  BY  BISHOP  KEN. 

Glory  to  thee,  my  God,  this  night 
For  all  the  blessings  of  the  light ; 
Keep  me,  oh,  keep  me,  King  of  kings, 
Beneath  thine  own  almighty  wings. 

Be  thou  my  guardian  while  I  sleep, 
Thy  watchful  station  near  me  keep ; 
My  heart  with  love  celestial  fill, 
And  guard  me  from  th'  approach  of  ill. 

Teach  me  to  live  that  I  may  dread 
The  grave  as  little  as  my  bed: 
Teach  me  to  die,  that  so  I  may 
Rise  glorious  at  the  judgment  day. 

Ix  "English  Church  Composers"  we  find  the  fol- 
lowing account  of  the  writer  of  this  tune: 

"The  particulars  of  his  early  education  are  indefi- 
nite. He  was  a  pupil  of  Thomas  Mulliner,  and  fel- 
low chorister  of  John  Redford,  of  St.  Paul's.  It  is 
supposed  that  as  soon  as  his  voice  broke  he  was  nomi- 
nated organist  at  Waltham  Abbey,  but  nothing  cer- 
tain is  known  beyond  the  fact  that  he  held  the  place 
in  1540,  when  the  last  abbot,  Thomas  Fuller,  sur- 
rendered to  Henry  VIII.  He  was  appointed  a  Gentle- 
man of  the  Chapel  Royal  about  the  year  1542,  and 
served  King  Henry  VIII.,  King  Edward,  Queen  Mary, 
and  Queen  Elizabeth  in  that  capacity,  his  stipend  be- 
ing sevenpence  a  day.  On  the  strength  of  the  title  of 
the  '  Cantiones  Sacrae '  he  is  said  by  some  writers  to 
have  been  organist  to  the  Chapel  to  the  first  three  of 
these  sovereigns,  but  this  could  only  have  been  in  his 

8 


170  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

turn.  The  earliest  lay  organists  appointed  were  (  Dr. 
Tye,  W.  Blitheman,  Thomas  Tallis,  and  William 
Byrde,'  and  none  received  such  appointments  until 
the  reign  of  Elizabeth.  It  was  anciently  the  custom, 
where  an  organ  existed,  for  the  instrument  to  be 
played  by  some  ecclesiastic  or  by  one  of  the  musical 
members  of  the  choir  in  rotation.  There  are  many 
cathedrals  and  collegiate  churches  where  organs  are 
known  to  have  existed,  and  provision  has  been  made 
in  their  statutes  for  payment  to  organ-makers,  as  well 
as  to  those  whose  duty  it  appears  to  have  been  to  blow 
the  organs,  when  there  is  no  mention  of  an  organist 
as  a  distinct  officer  of  the  church.   *  *  *  * 

uAmong  the  other  works  of  Tallis  may  be  men- 
tioned the  collection  of  hymns  and  other  compositions 
for  the  service  of  the  church  which  he  published  in 
conjunction  with  his  pupil,  William  Birde,  in  1575. 
Each  voice  part  was  printed  separately.  It  is  upon 
the  statement  here  made  that  Tallis  is  described  by 
some  writers  as  organist  to  the  four  sovereigns;  he 
was  so  only  to  one,  Queen  Elizabeth.  This  work  was 
the  first  printed  and  published  by  Thomas  Vautrollier, 
under  a  special  patent  granted  by  the  queen.  The 
terms  of  the  document,  and  the  privileges  it  conferred, 
show  the  high  estimation  in  which  the  patentees  were 
held. 

"  It  would  be  an  easier  task  to  collect  the  titles  of 
the  books  printed  under  this  patent  than  to  give  a 
list  of  the  compositions  of  Tallis  for  the  church.  St. 
Paul's  Cathedral  was  at  one  time  well  supplied  with 


TALL  IS"  EVENING  HYMN.  171 

copies  of  his  anthems.  The  Rev.  James  Clifford, 
Minor  Canon  of  St.  Paul's  in  the  reigns  of  Charles  I. 
and  II.,  in  his  book  of  the  words  of  'The  Divine  Ser- 
vices and  Anthems  usually  sung  in  the  Cathedrals 
and  Collegiate  Choires  in  the  Church  of  England,' 
1663,  the  first  collection  of  the  kind  ever  made,  gives 
a  list  of  ten,  of  which  perfect  copies  of  two  only  are 
now  in  existence,  namely,  'I  call  and  cry,'  and  'Hear 
the  voice  and  prayer,'  and  there  were  several  printed 
in  Barnard's  collection,  1641,  with  the  music.  All 
these  motets  or  anthems  were  originally  written  to 
Latin  words,  and  it  is  not  known  for  certain  whether 
he  or  some  one  else  adapted  them  to  English  words 
for  the  altered  service.  In  the  shifting  times  immedi- 
ately following  the  Reformation,  when  the  law  alter- 
nately permitted  the  use  of  Latin  and  English  in  the 
worship  of  the  church,  a  series  of  services  and  an- 
thems which  could  be  sung  in  either  tongue  was  use- 
ful and  necessary,  and  both  Tallis  and  his  pupil  Birde 
wrote  after  this  manner,  without  apparently  any  strain 
of  conscience.  It  is  supposed  that  Tallis,  though  out- 
wardly conforming  to  the  changes  made  from  time  to 
time,  retained  his  ancient  convictions,  as  well  as  his 
position  and  influence  at  court;  and,  although  partic- 
ulars of  his  life  are  scanty  and  uncertain,  it  is  stated 
that  he  was  in  attendance  upon  Queen  Elizabeth  at 
her  palace  at  Greenwich  when  he  died,  at  about  sev- 
enty years  of  age,  for  he  was  buried  in  the  old  parish 
church  there  in  November,  1585.  Strype,  who  wrote 
a  continuation  of  Stowe's  'Survey  of  London,'  pub- 


172  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

lislied  in  1720,  gives  the  epitaph  which  he  found  en- 
graved upon  a  brass  plate  in  ancient  Gothic  letters  in 
the  chancel. 

"  Enterred  here  doth  ly  a  worthy  wyght, 

Who  for  long  time  in  musick  bore  the  bell: 
His  name  to  shew  was  Thomas  Tallis  hyght; 
In  honest  vertuous  lyff  he  dyd  excell. 

"  He  served  long  tyme  in  chappel  with  grete  prayse, 

Fower  sovereygnes  reignes,  (a  thing  not  often  seene ;) 
I  mean  King  Henry  and  Prince  Edward's  dayes, 
Quene  Marie,  and  Elizabeth  our  quene. 

"  He  maryed  was,  though  children  he  had  none, 
And  lyv'd  in  love  full  three  and  thirty  yeres 
With  loyal  spowse,  whose  name  yclept  was  Jone, 
Who,  here  entombed,  him  company  now  bears. 

"  As  he  dyd  lyve,  so  also  dyd  he  dy, 

In  myld  and  quyet  sort,  O  happy  man ! 
To  God  ful  oft  for  mercy  did  he  cry ; 

Wherefore  he  lyves,  let  Deth  do  what  he  can." 


«TE  DEUM  LAUDAMUSy 

SEE   OLMUTZ,   AND  STORY  OF  THE   HYMNS. 

Since  the  morning  when  Peter  and  John  looked 
into  the  empty  sepulchre  there  has  perhaps  been  no 
Easter  so  noteworthy  as  that  of  A.  D.  387. 

Then  Ambrose,  the  great  bishop  of  Milan,  bap- 
tized Augustine,  the  greatest  theologian  of  the  Chris- 
tian Church. 

Augustine  was  born  in  North  Africa,  A.  D.  354. 
His  father  was  a  pagan  and  poor.  Monica,  his  Chris- 
tian  mother,   impressed   on    his   childhood    the  prin- 


"  TE  DEUM  LA  UDAMUSr  i 73 

ciples  of  Christianity.  He  neglected  them,  forsook 
them,  but  they  were  never  effaced. 

Such  were  his  talents  that,  having  graduated  when 
nineteen  from  the  University  of  Carthage,  he  became 
at  once  a  popular  teacher  of  rhetoric. 

Neither  as  a  boy  nor  as  a  young  man  was  Augustine 
chaste.  He  gave  rein  to  his  passions  and  to  his  ambi- 
tion. He  laid  aside  the  sacred  Scriptures;  they  were 
too  simple  in  matter  and  style  for  the  professor  of  rhet- 
oric, and  he  became  a  disciple  of  the  heretical  sect  of 
the  Manicheans,  who  taught  that  matter  and  evil 
were  independent  of  God. 

Monica  wept  over  her  brilliant  but  apostate  son. 
4 'Let  him  alone,"  said  a  pious  priest,  "and  he  will 
come  out  of  it  himself.  It  is  not  possible  that  the 
child  of  these  tears  should  perish."  The  words  proved 
prophetic. 

At  length  Augustine  abandoned  Carthage  for 
Rome.  The  Government  sent  him  to  teach  rhetoric 
in  Milan.  There  he  met  Ambrose,  who  years  before, 
while  governor  of  the  city,  had  been  made  its  bishop. 

The  people  had  met  in  the  Basilica  to  choose  a 
successor  to  their  dead  bishop.  A  division  arose,  and 
Ambrose,  fearing  a  riot,  entered  the  church  to  allay 
the  storm.  While  he  was  speaking  a  child  cried  out, 
u  Let  Ambrose  be  bishop!"  "Amen!  Amen!"  shout- 
ed the  people.  Reluctantly  he  submitted  to  the  peo- 
ple's choice,  laid  aside  his  patrician  robes,  distributed 
his  property  among  the  poor,  and  became  Milan's 
chief  pastor. 


i74  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

The  eloquence  of  Ambrose  at  first  attracted  Augus- 
tine. "How  eloquently  he  speaks!"  was  his  first 
thought.  Then  as  the  bishop's  arguments  removed 
Augustine's  objections  to  Christianity,  he  said,  "How 
truly  he  speaks!" 

But  the  moral  obstacle  to  his  reception  of  the  doc- 
trines of  Christ  remained.  He  would  not  give  up  his 
life  of  sinful  pleasure.  His  wretched  prayer  was, 
"Give  me  purity  and  temperance — only  not  yet." 

Walking  in  the  garden  one  day  in  tears,  he  threw 
himself  at  the  foot  of  a  fig-tree.  "Why  not  now?" 
he  moaned.  "Why  not  at  this  hour  make  an  end  of 
my  waywardness  and  disobedience?" 

Suddenly  he  heard  from  a  neighboring  house  the 
voice  of  a  child  chanting,  "Take  up  and  read." 

He  had  left  a  roll  of  the  New  Testament  in  an  ar- 
bor. Rising,  he  sought  the  roll,  opened  it,  and  his 
eyes  fell  on  these  words: 

"  Not  in  rioting  and  drunkenness,  not  in  chamber- 
ing and  wantonness,  not  in  strife  and  envying:  but 
put  ye  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  make  not  pro- 
vision for  the  flesh,  to  fulfil  the  lusts  thereof."     Rom. 

i3:  *3>  14- 

He  had  no  need  to  read  a  word  more.  A  light  of 
serenity  was  infused  into  his  heart.  The  darkness  of 
doubt  vanished.  He  sought  his  mother.  Her  heart 
leaped  for  joy  as  she  listened  to  the  story  of  the  prodi- 
gal's return.  The  child  of  many  tears  had  at  last 
come  to  himself  and  to  his  Father's  house. 

Augustine  determined  to  devote  his  life  to  the  ser- 


"  TE  DEUM  LA  UDAMUSr  175 

vice  of  God.  He  abandoned  his  lucrative  profession 
and  prepared  for  baptism. 

Ambrose  received  the  young  disciple  with  open 
arms,  and  on  Easter  eve,  A.  D.  387,  baptized  him  in 
the  presence  of  a  vast  throng  that  crowded  the  Ba- 
silica of  Milan. 

Tradition    says    that    the    bishop,    seeing  with    a 

prophet's  eye  that  all  Christendom  would  to  the  end 

of  time  be  influenced  by  that  baptism,  chanted  with 

upraised  hands  and  in  the  exultation  of  rapture: 

"  We  praise  thee,  O  God ;  we  acknowledge  thee  to  be  the  Lord. 
"All  the  earth  doth  worship  thee,  the  Father  everlasting." 

He  paused;  from  the  baptized  disciple  came  back 

the  response: 

"  To  thee  all  angels  cry  aloud,  the  heavens  and  all  the  powers 
therein. 

"To  thee  cherubim  and  seraphim  continually  do  cry, 

"  Holy,  holy,  holy,  Lord  God  of  Sabaoth  ; 

"  Heaven  and  earth  are  full  of  the  majesty  of  thy  glory." 

On  that  day,  says  the  legend,  the  Te  Dcum  Latida- 
mtcs  sprang  from  the  inspired  lips  of  Ambrose  and 
Augustine.  The  legend  at  least  seized  the  poetry  of 
the  great  event.  Ambrose  did  compose  the  Te  Dcum. 
Its  first  public  chanting  may  have  been  associated 
with  the  baptism  of  him  whom  the  whole  church 
reveres. 

The  great  theologian  wrote  volumes,  but  the  key- 
note of  his  theology  is  the  famous  sentence  in  the 
11  Confessions  " — 

"Thou  madest  us  for  thyself,  and  our  heart  is 
restless  till  it  rests  in  thee.'1  "Youth's Companion." 


176  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"TELL  ME  THE  OLD,  OLD  STORY:1 

W.   H.    DOANE,    1831. 

Dr.  Doane  thus  tells  the  story  of  this  popular 
gospel  song: 

"I  want  to  tell  you  now  about  my  little  favorite, 
'Tell  me  the  old,  old  story.'  I  did  not  write  the 
words,  and  there  are  very  few  persons  who  know  how 
they  originally  came  into  my  possession  or  by  whom 
they  were  written.  They  were  produced  by  Miss 
Kate  Hankey,  an  English  lady  of  distinction.  In 
1867  I  was  attending  the  international  meeting  of  the 
Y.  M.  C.  A.  at  Montreal.  Among  those  present  was 
Major-General  Russell,  then  in  command  of  the  Eng- 
lish forces  during  the  Fenian  excitement.  He  arose 
in  the  meeting  and  read  the  words  of  the  song  from  a 
sheet  of  foolscap  paper,  the  tears  streaming  down  his 
bronzed  cheeks  as  he  read.  I  was  much  impressed, 
and  immediately  requested  the  privilege  of  making  a 
copy.  He  gave  me  the  copy  from  which  he  had  read. 
I  wrote  the  music  for  the  song  while  on  the  stage- 
coach, one  hot  summer  afternoon,  between  the  Glenn 
Falls  House  and  the  Crawford  House  in  the  White 
Mountains.  That  evening  we  sang  it  in  the  parlors 
of  the  hotel,  and  thought  it  pretty,  though  we  scarcely 
anticipated  the  popularity  which  was  subsequently 
accorded  it.  It  was  afterwards  published  in  sheet 
form  in  Cincinnati."  Miss  Hankey  was  the  daughter 
of  an  English  banker. 


THE  MESSENGER  BIRD.  177 

THE  BETTER  LAXD. 

The  music  was  composed  by  Mrs.  Arkwright,  sis- 
ter of  Mrs.  Hemans.  The  words  are  by  Mrs.  He- 
mans. 


"THE  BREAKING   WAVES  DASHED  HIGH:' 

The  music  was  written  by  Miss  Browne,  sister  of 
Mrs.  Hemans,  afterward  Mrs.  Arkwright.  Moscheles, 
on  visiting  Sir  Walter  Scott,  promised  the  latter  that 
"he  would  find  a  publisher  for  some  pretty  songs  set 
to  music  by  a  Miss  Browne,  with  words  by  her  sister, 
Felicia  Hemans."     This  was  one  of  the  songs. 


11  THE  LIGHT  OF  THE  WORLD  IS  JESUS." 

P.    P.    BLISS,    1838-1876. 

Written  in  the  summer  of  1875  at  ^Ir-  Bliss' 
home,  664  West  Monroe  St.,  Chicago.  The  words 
and  music  came  to  him  simultaneously. 


THE  MESSENGER  BIRD. 

The  joint  production  of  Mrs.  Hemans  and  Mrs. 
Arkwright.  These  sisters  composed  a  number  of 
songs  and  music  together,  the  most  famous  of  which 
still  live.     This  song  begins, 

"Thou  art  come  from  the  spirit  land,  sweet  bird." 

The  Story  of  the  Tunes.  3* 


178  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"THERE  IS  A  HAPPY  LAND." 


AN    EAST    INDIAN   AIR. 


The  writer  of  the  religious  song  "There  is  a  hap- 
py land,  far,  far  away"  is  still  alive  (1889),  a  man 
eighty  years  of  age,  vigorous  in  mind  and  body,  and 
having  all  that  sympathy  for  children  without  which 
it  is  impossible  to  influence  the  little  ones  for  good. 
It  is  about  fifty  years  ago  since  these  words  were  writ- 
ten to  the  music  of  an  Indian  air,  and  they  have  since 
been  translated  into  nineteen  languages.  The  verses 
are  such  as,  to  use  Beaconsfield's  words,  "  touch  the 
heart  of  nations  and  appeal  to  the  domestic  sentiments 
of  mankind."  Yet  the  writer  who  shot  this  arrow 
into  the  air  has  been  forgotten  even  where  he  was 
ever  known.  Mr.  Andrew  Young,  now  after  nearly 
fifty-one  years,  may  find  this  song  in  the  hearts  of  a 
million  friends.  It  has  been  said  to  draw  tears  even 
from  the  eyes  of  one  who  has  been  called  a  cynic, 
that  man  of  the  world,  Thackeray.  He  once  stopped 
in  the  street  to  hear  it  sung  by  a  group  of  ragged 
children,  and  never  afterward  forgot  it  or  alluded 
without  emotion  to  the  impression  that  it  made  upon 
him. 


TOP  LADY. 

DR.   THOMAS   HASTINGS,    1784-1872. 


Composed  for  the   hymn    "Rock  of  Ages,"  and 
named  for  its  author. 


"WELCOME,  HAPPY  MORNING!"  179 

V/EBB. 

Dr.  Root  in  his  "Recollections,"  published  in  the 
1 '  Musical  Visitor, ' '  gives  the  following  pleasing  picture 
of  the  famous  author  of  the  tune  "  The  morning  light 
is  breaking,"  who  was  a  musical  teacher  in  Boston: 

"I  was  glad  enough,  however,  to  take  lessons  of 
Geo.  James  Webb,  the  best  vocal  teacher  in  Boston,  an 
elegant  organist,  an  accomplished  musician,  and  a 
model  Christian  gentleman.  He  received  me  with 
great  kindness,  and  after  trying  my  voice  in  various 
ways,  gave  me  some  exercises  to  work  upon.  At  my 
next  lesson,  after  I  had  sung  what  he  had  given  me 
to  practise,  he  looked  up  with  an  expression  of  pleased 
surprise  and  said,  '  Well,  Mr.  Root,  I  believe  you  will 
learn  to  sing.'  I  replied,  'Of  course;  that  is  what  I 
fully  intend  to  do.'  '  Ah,  but,'  he  responded,  'at 
your  first  lesson  I  thought  it  extremely  doubtful 
whether  it  would  be  worth  your  while  to  try.'  Of 
course  he  had  reference  to  solo  singing,  and  not  to 
joining  in  a  chorus,  which  I  could  then  do  fairly  well. 
My  lessons  went  on  with  him  for  months — a  year, 
perhaps — and  I  came  not  only  to  delight  in  them,  but 
in  the  friendly  atmosphere  of  his  pleasant  home," 


"WELCOME,  HAPPY  MORNING!" 

J.   BAPTISTE  CALKIN,   1827. 

This  is  the  old  processional  hymn  of  the  Latin 
Church  for  Easter.     Jerome  of  Prague  sang  it  at  the 


180  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

stake.  It  was  translated  by  Cranmer,  who  sent  it  to 
Henry  VIII.  The  present  music  is  by  John  Baptiste 
Calkin,   born   in   London,    1827;  ne  was  an  organist 

and  composer. 

♦ 

WELLESLEY. 

LIZZIE  S.  TOURJE'E. 

This  tune,  which  has  found  a  place  in  many  recent 
collections,  was  composed  by  Miss  Lizzie  S.  Tourjee,  a 
daughter  of  Dr.  E.  Tourjee,  Director  of  the  New  Eng- 
land Conservatory  of  Music.  She  was  a  member  of  the 
Newton  High  School  when  it  was  written.  A  gradu- 
ates' hymn  had  been  written,  and  Miss  Tourjee  had 
been  asked  to  set  it  to  music.  Returning  home  from 
school  she  took  the  hymn  to  her  father,  saying  that  she 
did  not  know  how  to  compose  appropriate  music  for  it. 
1 '  Sit  down  to  the  piano, ' '  said  her  father,  ' '  and  put  the 
words  before  you  and  try."  She  did  so,  when  the  tune, 
named  by  her  father  u  Wellesley,"  and  published  by 
him  in  the  "Tribute  of  Praise,"  came  floating  into 
her  mind  and  found  expression  on  the  keys. 


"WE'RE  GOING  HOME  TO-MORROW." 

P.   P.   BLISS,  1 838-1 876. 

The  words  are  by  "  Paulina,"  supposed  to  be  Mrs. 
Bliss,  but  really  Mrs.  Griswold,  of  Chicago.  Mrs. 
Griswold  was  a  friend  of  the  gospel  singers,  and  espe- 
cially of  Dr.   Root   and    Mr.    Bliss.      She  wrote  the 


14  WHA  T  SHALL   THE  HAR  I  EST  BET     1S1 

hymns,  "I  will  love  Jesus,"  "Hold  fast  till  I  come," 
and  "  Who  is  on  the  Lord's  side?" 

This  song  is  interesting  from  the  tradition  that  it 
was  sung  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bliss  when  perishing  amid 
the  wreck  of  the  train  at  Ashtabula. 


11  WE  SHALL  MEET  BEYOXD  THE  RIVER." 

HUBERT   P.    MAIN. 

The  words  were  written  by  Rev.  John  Atkinson, 
D.  D.,  in  1867,  soon  after  the  death  of  his  mother. 
He  had  been  engaged  in  revival  work,  and  one  night 
in  his  study  "that  song  in  substance  seemed,"  he 
says,  u  to  sing  itself  into  my  heart."  He  said  to 
himself,  "I  would  better  write  it  down,  or  I  shall 
lose  it." 

"There,"  he  adds,  "in  the  silence  of  my  study, 
and  not  far  from  midnight,  I  wrote  the  hymn." 


" WHA  T  SHALL  THE  HARVEST  BE  ?" 

P.   P.   BLISS,    1S38-1876. 

One  night  a  man,  staggering  through  the  streets 
of  Chicago,  noticed  the  people  entering  a  large,  lighted 
building.  Ignorant  that  it  was  the  Tabernacle,  where 
Messrs.  Moody  and  Sankey  were  holding  religious 
meetings,  he  staggered  in  and  sat  down  near  one  of 
the  posts  which  supported  the  roof. 

In  a  sort  of  drunken  stupor  he  leaned  his  head 
against  the  post.     Something  roused  him.    The  happy 


182  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

faces  of  the  people  disturbed  him.      l '  This  is  no  place 

for  me,"  he  said  to  himself,  and  arose  to  go  out. 

Just  then  Mr.  Moody  gave  out  the  hymn,  u  What 

shall  the  harvest  be?"     The  first  strains  arrested  the 

man's  attention.     He  sat  down  and  listened.     With  a 

thrill  of  emotion  he  heard  the  lines, 

"  Sowing  the  seed  of  a  tarnished  name, 
Sowing  the  seed  of  eternal  shame." 

''That's  me,"  he  said  to  himself.  "That's  what 
I  have  been  doing,  'sowing  the  seed  of  a  tarnished 
name. '  My  name  is  gone,  and  now  I  am  '  sowing  the 
seed  of  eternal  shame!'  " 

He  was  so  disturbed  that  as  soon  as  the  singing 
ended  he  went  out,  determined  to  drown  out  those 
convicting  lines  with  rum.  He  entered  a  saloon, 
called  for  a  drink,  raised  the  glass  to  his  lips,  and  set 
it  down  untasted. 

"  As  I  attempted  to  drink,"  he  said,  when  subse- 
quently he  told  his  story,  "I  could  see  written  on 
the  walls  of  the  bar-room,  '  What  shall  the  harvest 
be?'  " 

He  sought  his  home.  In  the  darkness,  as  he  tossed 
to  and  fro  on  his  bed,  he  saw  on  the  walls  of  the  bed- 
room, "What  shall  the  harvest  be?" 

The  next  day  found  him  in  the  Tabernacle  again, 
with  that  solemn  question  ringing  in  his  ears.  A 
Christian  gentleman  addressed  him  and  heard  his 
pathetic  story.  They  prayed  together,  and  the  trem- 
bling drunkard  listened  to  the  good  news  that  even  he 
might  be  saved  from  the  "eternal  shame." 


"WHEN JESUS  COMES:'  183 

He  believed,  he  entered  upon  the  right  way,  and 
walked  therein.  The  staggering  drunkard  stood  firmly 
on  his  feet,  a  reformed,  Christian  man. 

One  day  just  before  Mr.  Sankey — from  whose  nar- 
rative wTe  have  condensed  this  story — left  the  city,  the 
man  came  to  him.  "Here  is  a  letter,"  he  said,  "I 
want  to  read  you.  It  is  from  my  little  girl.  My  wife 
and  I  have  been  separated;  for  eight  years  I  have  not 
seen  them." 

Then  with  tears  he  read,  "  Papa,  I  knew  that  you 
would  come  back  to  us  some  time.  I  knew  that  the 
Lord  would  find  you,  for  I  have  been  praying  for  you 

all  these  years. ' '  "  Youth's  Companion." 


"  WHEN  JESUS  COMES.11 

P.    P.   BLISS,  1838-1876. 

In  regard  to  this  highly  spiritual  hymn,  J.  S.  Ells- 
worth, of  the  family  of  Mr.  Bliss,  writes  to  us: 

UI  do  not  think  I  exaggerate  when  I  say  that  the 
hymns  and  tunes  all  came  from  intimate  communion 
with  God  through  his  Word  and  by  prayer.  None  of 
the  immediate  family  can  ever  forget  the  light  of 
heaven  irradiating  his  noble  features  as  he  sat  down 
to  the  organ  to  sing  one  of  his  hymns,  written  while 
alone  with  God.  At  such  times  he  would  often  call 
in  members  of  the  family  to  sing  and  rejoice  with  him 
over  what  God  had  given. 

"  You  ask  particularly  concerning  the  hymn-music 
'When  Jesus  comes/     It  was  written  in  Peoria,  111 i- 


1 84  THE  STORY  OF'  THE  TUNES. 

nois,  in  1872,  and  was  suggested  by  a  conversation  on 
the  subject  of  our  Lord's  return — a  subject  near  to  his 
heart.  A  short  time  after  this  conversation  he  was 
coming  down  stairs  from  his  room,  his  mind  deeply 
impressed  by  the  subject.  Spontaneously  the  words 
and  music  came  to  him,  and  as  he  descended  the 
stairs  he  sang  them  and  at  once  wrote  them  down." 


«  WHEN,  MARSHALLED  ON  THE  NIGHTLY  PLAIN" 

AIR  "BONNIE  DOON."     JAMES  MILLER.     WORDS  BY  HENRY  KIRKE  WHITE. 

Burns  writes:  "  '  Ye  banks  and  braes  o'  Bonnie 
Doon'  might,  I  think,  find  a  place" — in  a  collection. 

"  Do  you  know  the  history  of  the  air?  It  is  curi- 
ous enough.  A  good  many  years  ago  Mr.  James  Mil- 
ler, writer  in  your  own  town,  was  in  company  with 
our  friend  Clarke,  and  talking  of  Scottish  airs.  Miller 
expressed  an  ardent  ambition  to  be  able  to  compose  a 
Scottish  air.  Mr.  Clarke,  partly  by  way  of  a  joke, 
told  him  to  keep  to  the  black  keys  of  the  harpsichord 
and  preserve  some  sort  of  a  rhythm,  and  he  would 
infallibly  compose  a  Scottish  air.  In  a  few  days  Mil- 
ler produced  the  rudiments  of  this  air." 


"WHOSOEVER   WILL." 

P.   P.   BLISS,  1 838-1876. 

" Whosoever  will  may  come"  was  written  dur- 
ing the  winter  of  1869  and  '70,  after  hearing  Henry 


-WHOSOEVER   WILL."  1S5 

Moorhouse,  of  England,  preach  from  the  text,  "  God 
so  loved  the  world  that  he  grave  his  onlv-bejjotten  Son, 
that  whosoever  believeth  in  him  should  not  perish, 
but  have  everlasting  life,"  John  3:16.  Mr.  Moor- 
house preached  every  night  for  a  week  from  this  same 
text,  and  the  new  views  of  the  freeness  and  fulness  of 
the  invitation  of  the  gospel  to  sinners  that  many  Chris- 
tians in  Chicago  at  that  time  received  are  well  ex- 
pressed in  Mr,  Bliss'  hymn: 

"  WHOSOEVER  WILL." 

"  Whosoever  heareth,"  shout,  shout  the  sound, 
Send  the  blessed  tidings  all  the  world  around ; 
Spread  the  joyful  news  wherever  man  is  found, 
"  Whosoever  will  may  come." 

Chorus. 
"Whosoever  will,  whosoever  will," 
Send  the  proclamation  over  vale  and  hill ; 
T  is  a  loving  Father  calls  the  wand'rer  home, 
"  Whosoever  will  may  come." 

Memoir  of  P.  P.  Bliss. 


iV^issiorfary  Praise  SerVice- 


iS- 


"  }  ESt  MY  NA  TIVE  LAND,  I  LOVE  THEE."  i8g 

THE  MISSIONARY  PRAISE  SERVICE. 

The  music  for  missionary  meetings  and  praise 
service  is  not  extensive,  but  much  of  it  is  very  spir- 
itual aud  beautiful.  The  "Missionary  Hymn,"  by 
Heber  and  Lowell  Mason,  is  well  known  and  is  always 
inspiring.  An  old  collection  of  music  called  the 
"American  Vocalist"  contained  much  missionary 
music  that  met  the  wants  of  the  work,  among  the 
pieces  being  the  "Missionary's  Farewell,"  "The 
faithful  Sentinel,"  and  Washburn's  beautiful  hymn, 
"The  burial  of  Mrs.  Judson." 

For  the  use  of  the  choir  no  better  missionary  hymn 
and  tune  are  found  than  Lowell  Mason's  "Watch- 
man, tell  us  of  the  night."  It  has  the  form  of  dia- 
logue, and  the  impression  is  spiritual,  hopeful,  and 
inspiring.  It  gives  the  right  spirit  and  tone  to  the 
opening  of  the  missionary  meeting. 


«  YES,  MY  NATIVE  LAND,  1  LOVE  THEE." 

This  beautiful  hymn,  written  by  S.  F.  Smith 
many  years  ago,  on  the  departure  of  missionaries, 
deserves  to  live  and  to  be  often  used.  It  breathes  the 
spirit  of  consecration  and  self-sacrifice. 

Yes,  my  native  land!  I  love  thee; 

All  thy  scenes,  I  love  them  well ; 
Friends,  connections,  happy  country. 

Can  I  bid  you  all  farewell  ? 
Can  I  leave  you, 

Far  in  heathen  lands  to  dwell  ? 


i9o  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Yes,  I  hasten  from  you  gladly, 
From  the  scenes  I  loved  so  well : 

Far  away,  ye  billows,  bear  me ; 
Lovely  native  land,  farewell ! 

Pleased,  I  leave  thee, 
Far  in  heathen  lands  to  dwell. 

In  the  desert  let  me  labor, 
On  the  mountains  let  me  tell 

How  He  died— the  blessed  Saviour— 
To  redeem  a  world  from  hell ! 

Let  me  hasten 
Far  in  heathen  lands  to  dwell. 

Bear  me  on,  thou  restless  ocean, 
Let  the  winds  my  canvas  swell ; 

Heaves  my  heart  with  warm  emotion 
While  I  go  far  hence  to  dwell. 

Glad  I  bid  thee, 
Native  land,  farewell,  farewell ! 


It  is  usually  sung  to  "  Rousseau's  Dream"  ("Green- 
ville"), of  which  mention  has  already  been  made. 

Some  fifty  years  ago  there  took  place  in  a  rural 
town  in  New  York  a  simple  service  that  touched  the 
hearts  of  all  who  witnessed  it.  It  had  reference  to  the 
departure  of  a  missionary  for  Oregon.  The  missionary 
was  a  young  lady,  greatly  beloved  in  the  town  of  her 
residence. 

She  was  a  member  of  the  choir.  A  hymn  then 
familiar  was  given  out  by  the  minister,  beginning, 

"Yes,  my  native  land,  I  love  thee." 

As  it  was  being  sung  many  of  the  singers  were  deeply 
affected,  and  one  by  one  ceased  to  sustain  the  simple 


"  YES.ffr NATIVE  LAND \I LOVE  THEEr  191 

melody.     The  young  missionary  found  herself  at  last 
singing  nearly  or  quite  alone: 

44  Scenes  of  sacred  peace  and  pleasure, 
Holy  days  and  Sabbath  bell, 
Richest,  brightest,  purest  treasure, 
Glad  I  bid  you  all  farewell." 

Years  afterwards  this  incident  was  distinctly  re- 
called when  it  was  announced  that  the  woman's  influ- 
ence as  the  wife  of  the  pioneer  missionary  had  much 
contributed  in  bringing  to  the  United  States  a  territory 
larger  in  extent  than  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  and 
nearly  four  times  as  large  as  New  England.  This  vast 
region  is  now  known  as  Oregon,  Washington,  and 
Idaho. 

In  the  spring  of  1836  two  newly  married  mission- 
aries and  their  wives  began  a  bridal  tour  from  New 
York  to  Walla- Walla,  a  distance  of  thirty-five  hundred 
miles.  The  expedition  is  now  famous  in  history  as 
Whitman  and  Spaulding's,  after  the  names  of  the  two 
clergymen  who  with  their  wives  then  started  on  horse- 
back for  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  the  regions  beyond.  * 

They  passed  Cincinnati — a  village;  Pittsburgh — a 
simple  backwoods  town.  Chicago  had  not  yet  heard 
the  whistle  of  the  locomotive.  They  arrived  at  Coun- 
cil Bluffs  ;  then  they  began  to  ascend  the  mountain 
stairs  of  the  grand  divide  of  the  waters  of  the  conti- 
nent. 

In  this  sublime  journey  into  the  regions  of  nature's 
most  stupendous  monuments  the  health  of  Mrs.  Spaul- 
ding  failed.      "Do  not  put  me  on  the  horse  again," 


i92  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

she  said  one  morning.  "Leave  me  here,  and  save 
yourselves  for  the  great  work.  Tell  mother  that  I  am 
glad  I  came." 

But  her  strength  revived,  and  she  went  on.  Twen- 
ty-five hundred  miles  from  home  the  party  looked 
down  upon  the  Pacific  slope  and  beheld  a  new  em- 
pire. 

It  was  a  July  day  under  a  blazing  sun.  The 
crowns  of  mountains  filled  the  air  around  them.  Be- 
fore them  lay  the  vast  and  mysterious  rivers  of  the 
Platte,  Yellowstone,  and  Columbia,  with  their  luxu- 
riant valleys. 

The  missionaries  rested.  "  Let  us  have  a  season  of 
devotion,"  said  their  leader. 

They  lifted  the  American  flag  in  the  clear  air. 
They  then  laid  a  Bible  beneath  it  on  the  ground, 
and  opened  it.  Then  they  knelt  under  the  flag  and 
around  the  open  Bible  and  took  formal  possession  of 
the  western  side  of  the  continent  for  the  Christian 
church. 

Our  history  has  few  pictures  that  are  more  poetic. 
It  was  like  Balboa  at  Panama  or  La  Salle  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi. 


ZINZENDORES  MISSIONARY  HYMN. 

SEE  ZINZENDORF,  IN   "  STORY  OF  THE  HYMNS." 

This  is  sung  to  several  long  metre  tunes,  among 
them  Lowell  Mason's  "Hebron"  and  "Ashwell," 
and  the  "  Doxology"  attributed  to  John  Huss. 


ZINZENDORF'S  MISSIONAR  Y  HYMN.      193 

The  words  were  written  on  Zinzendorf's  return 
voyage  from  his  first  missionary  work  in  America  in 
the  Antilles. 

The  following  is  John  Wesley's  translation  of  the 

hymn: 

Jesus,  thy  blood  and  righteousness 
My  beauty  are,  my  glorious  dress ! 
'Mid  flaming  worlds,  in  these  arrayed, 
With  joy  shall  I  lift  up  my  head. 

Bold  shall  I  stand  in  thy  great  day, 
For  who  aught  to  my  charge  shall  lay  ? 
Fully  absolved  through  these  I  am 
From  sin  and  fear,  from  guilt  and  shame. 

The  holy,  meek,  unspotted  Lamb, 
Who  from  the  Father's  bosom  came, 
Who  died  for  me,  even  me,  to  atone, 
Now  for  my  Lord  and  God  I  own. 

Lord,  I  believe  thy  precious  blood, 
Which  at  the  mercy-seat  of  God 
For  ever  doth  for  sinners  plead, 
For  me — e'en  for  my  soul — was  shed. 

Lord,  I  believe  were  sinners  more 
Than  sands  upon  the  ocean  shore, 
Thou  hast  for  all  a  ransom  paid, 
For  all  a  full  atonement  made. 

When  from  the  dust  of  death  I  rise 
To  claim  my  mansion  in  the  skies, 
E'en  then  this  shall  be  all  my  plea  : 
Jesus  hath  lived,  hath  died,  for  me. 

Thus  Abraham,  the  Friend  of  God, 
Thus  all  heaven's  armies  bought  with  blood, 
Saviour  of  sinners  thee  proclaim — 
Sinners,  of  whom  the  chief  I  am. 

The  Story  of  the  Tones.  n 


i94  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Jesus,  be  endless  praise  to  thee, 
Whose  boundless  mercy  hath  for  me, 
For  me,  and  all  thy  hands  have  made, 
An  everlasting  ransom  paid. 

Ah  !  give  to  all  thy  servants,  Lord, 
With  power  to  speak  thy  gracious  word, 
That  all  who  to  thy  wounds  will  flee 
May  find  eternal  life  in  thee. 

Thou  God  of  power,  thou  God  of  love, 
Let  the  whole  world  thy  mercy  prove ! 
Now  let  thy  word  o'er  all  prevail ; 
Now  take  the  spoils  of  death  and  hell. 

Says  Ziruendorf  in  reference  to  his  missionary 
journeys: 

"That  place  becomes  our  home  where  the  most 
can  be  done  for  the  Saviour  at  the  time." 

"I  have  no  plan;  I  follow  Christ  from  year  to 
year;  I  seek  out  as  many  of  the  heathen  as  I  can;  I 
love  the  pulpit,  and  I  have  labored  to  unite  all  the 
children  of  God  who  do  not  dwell  together." 


DOXOLOGY  OF  JOHN  HUSS. 

John  Huss,  burned  alive  at  Constance  in  1415, 
died  singing  amid  the  flames,  after  praying  thus: 
"Assist  me,  that  with  a  firm  mind,  by  thy  most  pow- 
erful grace,  I  may  undergo  this  most  awful  death  to 
which  I  am  condemned  for  preaching  thy  most  holy 
gospel." 

The  English  processional  music — "Miles  Lane"  — 

to 

"All  hail  the  power  of  Jesus'  name," 

well  serves  the  missionary  concert. 


C^ristit|as  Carols. 


ADESTE  EIDEEES.  197 

CHRISTMAS  CAROLS. 

Most  churches  and  Sunday-schools  seek  for  the 
best  Christmas  carols  on  the  approach  of  the  season 
that  celebrates  the  Nativity.  What  are  the  best 
Christmas  carols  for  Christmas  eve,  for  the  Christmas 
concert,  or  for  the  use  of  the  choir  ?  What  collection 
of  carols  would  make  a  devout  and  inspiring  service 
of  song  ?  A  special  charm,  in  this  retrospective  ser- 
vice, endears  to  us  the  words  and  music  which  have 
expressed  the  worship  of  past  ages,  and  are  thus  hal- 
lowed by  sacred  associations.  We  mention  a  few 
such. 


ADESTE  EIDELES,  OR   PORTUGUESE  HYMN. 

Oh,  come,  all  ye  faithful, 

Joyful  and  triumphant, 

Come  ye,  oh,  come  ye  to  Bethlehem! 

Come  and  adore  him, 

Born  the  King  of  angels ! 

Oh,  hasten  to  adore  him, 

Oh,  hasten  to  adore  him, 

Oh,  hasten  to  adore  him, 
Christ  our  Lord! 

Sing,  choirs  of  angels, 

Sing  in  exultation  ! 

Come,  all  ye  citizens  of  heaven,  rejoice ! 

Glory  to  God  be, 

Glory  in  the  highest! 

Oh,  hasten  to  adore  him, 

Oh,  hasten  to  adore  him, 

Oh,  hasten  to  adore  him, 
Christ,  our  Lord ! 


198  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"SILENT  NIGHT/  HOLY  NIGHT/11 

J.    M.    HAYDN,   1737-1808. 

The  following,  with  its  music,  forms  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  carols  ever  written.  It  is  a  translation 
of  an  old  German  Christmas  song. 

Silent  night !     Holy  night ! 

All  is  calm,  all  is  bright: 

Round  yon  virgin  mother  and  child, 

Holy  infant  so  tender  and  mild, 

Falls  a  heavenly  peace, 

Falls  a  heavenly  peace. 

Silent  night !     Holy  night ! 
Shepherds  quake  at  the  sight ; 
Glories  stream  from  heaven  afar, 
Heavenly  hosts  sing  alleluia! 
Christ  the  Saviour  is  born, 
Christ  the  Saviour  is  born. 

Silent  night!     Holy  night! 
Son  of  God,  love's  pure  light 
Radiant  beams  from  thy  holy  face, 
With  the  dawn  of  redeeming  grace, 
Jesus,  Lord,  at  thy  birth, 
Jesus,  Lord,  at  thy  birth. 


THE  ENDLESS  HALLELUJAH/ 

JOSEPH   BARNBY,    1838.      WORDS   BY   REV.   J.    ELLERTON. 

Sing  Hallelujah  forth  in  duteous  praise, 
O  citizens  of  heaven,  and  sweetly  raise 
An  endless  Hallelujah. 

Ye  next,  who  stand  before  the  Eternal  Light, 
In  hymning  choirs  reecho  to  the  height 
An  endless  Hallelujah. 


BALL.  199 

The  Holy  City  shall  take  up  your  strain, 
And  with  glad  songs  resounding  wake  again 
An  endless  Hallelujah. 

In  blissful  antiphons  ye  thus  rejoice 
To  render  to  the  Lord  with  thankful  voice 
An  endless  Hallelujah. 

Ye  who  have  gained  at  length  your  palms  in  bliss, 
Victorious  ones,  your  chant  shall  still  be  this, 
An  endless  Hallelujah. 

There,  in  one  grand  acclaim,  for  ever  ring 
The  strains  which  tell  the  honor  of  your  King, 
An  endless  Hallelujah, 

This  is  the  rest  for  weary  ones  brought  back  ; 
This  is  the  food  and  drink  which  none  shall  lack, 
An  endless  Hallelujah ; 

While  thee,  by  whom  were  all  things  made,  we  praise 
For  ever,  and  tell  out  in  sweetest  lays 
An  endless  Hallelujah. 

Almighty  Christ,  to  thee  our  voices  sing 
Glory  for  evermore ;  to  thee  we  bring 
An  endless  Hallelujah.     Amen. 


BALL. 

W.    B.    BRADBURY,    l8i6-lS6S. 

This  tune  has  been  frequently  sung  in  Wellesley 
College  chapel. 
The  words, 

"  When  verdure  clothes  the  fertile  vale," 

are  by  Rev.  Edmund  Hamilton  Sears,  born  1S10. 


200  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

This  hymn  and  tune  are  among  the  best  Christ- 
mas compositions  of  recent  years. 


LUTHER'S  SONG. 

SUNG   IN  THE  STREETS  WHEN  A  BOY. 

Foxes  to  their  holes  have  gone, 

Every  bird  into  its  nest; 
But  I  wander  here  alone, 

And  for  me  there  is  no  rest ; 
Yet  I  neither  faint  nor  fear, 
For  the  Saviour  Christ  is  near. 

If  I  live  he  '11  near  me  be, 

If  I  die,  to  him  I  '11  go  : 
He  '11  not  leave  me,  I  will  trust  him, 

And  my  heart  no  fear  shall  know. 
Sin  and  sorrow  I  defy, 
For  on  Jesus  I  rely. 


FOLSOM. 

J.    C.    W.    A.    MOZART,    1756-I79I. 

Brightest  and  best  of  the  sons  of  the  morning, 
Dawn  on  our  darkness  and  lend  us  thine  aid. 

Star  of  the  East,  the  horizon  adorning, 

Guide  where  our  infant  Redeemer  is  laid. 

Bishop  Reginald  Heber. 

MOZART. 

J.    C.   W.    A.   MOZART. 

Hark  !  the  herald  angels  sing, 
"Glory  to  the  new-born  King! 
Peace  on  earth  and  mercy  mild, 
God  and  sinners  reconciled  !" 

Charles  Wesley,  1739. 


LATIN  CHURCH  CHILDREN'S  CAROL.      201 
ANTIOCH. 

GEO.    FR.    HANDEL.      ARRANGED    BY    LOWELL    MASON. 

Joy  to  the  world,  the  Lord  is  come! 

Let  earth  receive  her  King, 

Let  every  heart  prepare  him  room, 

And  heaven  and  nature  sing. 

Isaac  Watts. 


CHRISTMAS. 

HANDEL,    I6S4-1759. 


While  shepherds  watched  their  flocks  by  night, 

All  seated  on  the  ground, 

The  angel  of  the  Lord  came  down, 

And  glory  shone  around. 

Tate  and  Brady. 


LATIN  CHURCH  CHILDREN S  CAROL. 

Angels  we  have  heard  on  high, 
Sweetly  singing  o'er  the  plains, 

And  the  mountains  in  reply 
Echo  back  their  joyous  strains. 

Shepherds,  why  this  jubilee? 

Why  your  rapturous  strains  prolong? 
Say,  what  may  the  tidings  be 

Which  inspire  your  heavenly  song  ? 

Come  to  Bethlehem,  come  and  see 
Him  whose  birth  the  angels  sing ; 

Come  adore  on  bended  knee 
The  infant  Christ,  the  new-born  King. 

See  within  a  manger  laid 
Jesus,  Lord  of  heaven  and  earth  ; 

Mary,  Joseph,  lend  your  aid, 

With  us  sing  our  Saviour's  birth. 

Gloria  in  excelsis  Deo, 
Gloria  in  excelsis  Deo. 


202  THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

A  THENS. 

FELICE  GIARDINI,  I716-I796.      WORDS   BY   EDMUND  H.   SEARS. 

It  came  upon  the  midnight  clear, 

That  glorious  song  of  old, 
From  angels  bending  near  the  earth 

To  touch  their  harps  of  gold: 
"  Peace  on  the  earth,  good-will  to  men 

From  heaven's  all-gracious  King!" 
The  world  in  solemn  stillness  lay 

To  hear  the  angels  sing. 


GEORGE  MOORES  CHRISTMAS. 

George  Moore,  the  eminent  English  philan- 
thropist, who  recently  died,  began  life  in  extreme 
poverty.  His  biographer  gives  a  pitiful  account  of 
his  crying  in  the  streets  of  London  because  he  had 
no  friends  and  could  not  find  work.    * 

His  middle  life  was  passed  in  well-earned  afflu- 
ence, and  his  last  years  were  spent  in  the  grand  old 
castle  of  the  ancient  Percys,  which  he  had  gazed  upon 
in  awe  in  boyhood,  and  which  his  great  wealth  at  last 
enabled  him  to  purchase  for  a  home. 

He  was  exposed  to  great  temptations  in  youth,  but 
when  he  came  to  feel  that  the  tendency  of  his  life  was 
wrong  in  any  direction,  he  arrested  the  wrong  course 
by  prompt  decision.  It  was  these  decisions,  these 
constant  turnings  from  evil  courses  into  life's  best 
ways,  that  led  him  at  last  to  a  career  of  worldly  suc- 
cess, piety,  and  philanthropy. 

He  thus  describes  one  of  the  dangerous  periods  of 
his  first  apprenticeship: 


GEORGE  MOORE'S  CHRISTMAS.  203 

"  My  master  gave  way  to  drinking  and  set  before 
me  a  bad  example.  I  lodged  in  the  public  house 
nearly  all  the  time,  and  saw  nothing  but  wickedness 
and  drinking.  I  played  cards  almost  every  night — 
sometimes  the  whole  night  through.  Gambling  was 
my  passion,  and  it  might  have  been  my  ruin." 

It  was  Christmas  morning.  The  apprentice  lad 
had  spent  the  night  at  the  card-table.  He  had  retired 
long  after  midnight,  with  a  conscience  ill  at  ease  and 
the  prospect  of  dismissal  from  his  master's  service  be- 
fore him. 

Suddenly  his  ear  was  arrested  by  strains  of  music. 
The  gray  light  was  breaking,  and  the  waits,  as  is  the 
custom  in  England,  were  abroad  playing  carols.  The 
music  brought  before  his  mind,  like  a  vision,  his  old 
home,  the  future  dangers  of  his  present  course,  and, 
in  contrast  with  his  own  eclipsed  life,  the  luminous 
Bethlehem  story. 

u  Better  thoughts,"  he  says,  "came  over  me  with 
the  sweet  carols.  I  felt  overwhelmed  with  remorse 
and  penitence.  I  thought  of  my  dear  father,  and 
feared  that  I  might  break  his  heart  and  bring  his 
gray  hairs  in  sorrow  to  the  grave.  I  resolved  to  give 
up  card-playing  and  gambling.  This  resolve,  by  the 
grace  of  God,  I  have  firmly  carried  out." 

Many  years  passed,  and  George  Moore's  life  be- 
came an  expression  of  gratitude  to  God  for  the  grace 
that  had  been  given  him  at  these  critical  periods  of 
youth.  "George  Moore's  Christmases"  of  charities 
to  the  poor  became  a  famous  feature  of  London. 


204  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES, 

CHRISTMAS  DOXOLOGY. 

PILESGROVE.      JOHN  STICKNEY,    1742-1826. 

The  music  and  words  of  the  following  carol,  a 
version  from  Luther,  are  among  the  most  beautiful  in 
modern  psalmody: 

All  praise  to  thee,  eternal  Lord, 
Clothed  in  a  garb  of  flesh  and  blood  ; 
Choosing  a  manger  for  thy  throne, 
While  worlds  on  worlds  are  thine  alone. 

Once  did  the  skies  before  thee  bow ; 
A  virgin's  arms  contain  thee  now ; 
Angels  who  did  in  thee  rejoice 
Now  listen  for  thine  infant  voice. 

Thou  comest  in  the  darksome  night 
To  make  us  children  of  the  light, 
To  make  us  in  the  realms  divine 
Like  thine  own  angels  round  thee  shine. 

All  this  for  us  thy  love  hath  done ; 

By  this  to  thee  our  love  is  won  ; 

For  this  we  tune  our  cheerful  lays 

And  shout  our  thanks  in  ceaseless  praise. 


Old  Revival  Melodies. 


L O  VING-KINDNESS.  207 

OLD  REVIVAL  MELODIES. 

With  the  popular  so-called  Old  Folks'  Concerts 
this  book  has  nothing  to  do,  as  that  kind  of  entertain- 
ment is  not  within  its  purpose.  But  many  churches 
like  from  time  to  time  to  revive  the  old  tunes  at  their 
Praise  Services;  such  tunes  recall  sacred  scenes  and 
associations  and  brinQf  back  memories  of  the  sweetest 
religious  experiences. 

Some  of  the  old  tunes  that  are  now  almost  wholly 
omitted  from  collections  were  very  spiritual.  Among 
them  the  following: 

UNION  HYMN. 

WILLIAM    BILLINGS,     17^6-lSoO. 

From  whence  doth  this  union  arise, 
That  hatred  is  conquered  by  love  ? 

It  fastens  our  souls  in  such  ties 
As  nature  and  time  can't  remove. 

The  words  of  the  above  hymn  were  written  by 
Thomas  Baldwin,  D.  D.,  1 753-1825.  It  was  composed 
during  a  night  journey  from  Newport,  N.  H.,  to  Ca- 
naan, N.  H.  There  had  been  trouble  in  the  church  at 
Newport,  and  his  visit  had  restored  brotherly  love. 


LOVING-KINDNESS. 

WILLIAM    CALDWELL,  TKNN.,   183O. 

Awake,  my  soul,  to  joyful  lays, 
And  sing  thy  great  Redeemer's  prj 


208  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

He  justly  claims  a  song  from  me  : 
His  loving-kindness,  oh,  how  free! 
Loving-kindness,  loving-kindness, 
His  loving-kindness,  oh,  how  free  ! 

The  words  are  by  Rev.  Samuel  Medley,  1 738-1 799. 


"  THERE  ARE  ANGELS  HOVERING  ROUND." 

HUSBAND. 

The   author  of   this  tuue  was  a  clerk  of  Surrey 

Chapel,  London. 

♦ 

THE  GARDEN  HYMN. 

JEREMIAH    INGALLS,    1764-1838. 

The  Lord  into  his  garden  comes  ; 
The  spices  yield  a  rich  perfume, 
The  lilies  grow  and  thrive, 
The  lilies  grow  and  thrive  : 
Refreshing  showers  of  grace  divine 
From  Jesus  flow  to  every  vine, 
Which  makes  the  dead  revive, 
Which  makes  the  dead  revive. 

A  hymn  of  the  Wesleyan  revivals. 


THE  OLD  NEW  ENGLAND  ANTHEM  FOR  EASTER. 

BILLINGS,    1746-1800. 

The  words  were  from  Young's  "Night  Thoughts:" 
"  The  Lord  is  risen  indeed,  Hallelujah  !" 


WA  TCH  NIGHT. 

JAMES  LUCAS,   OF   ENGLAND,    1762-1800. 

The  words  of  this  old  Wesleyan  hymn  and  tune 
began  thus: 


HENLEY.  209 

Come,  let  us  anew  our  journey  pursue, 

Roll  round  with  the  year, 
And  never  stand  still  till  the  Master  appear! 
His  adorable  will  let  us  gladly  fulfil, 

And  our  talents  improve, 
By  the  patience  of  hope  and  the  labor  of  love. 


"OH,  HOW  HAPPY  ARE  THEYT 

TUNE   BY    R.    D.    HUMPHREYS,    OF   THE   SOUTH,    1$20. 

The  favorite  old  Wesleyan  hymn  of  pioneer  Meth- 
odism in  America. 

Oh,  how  happy  are  they 

Who  the  Saviour  obey, 
And  have  laid  up  their  treasure  above  ! 

Tongue  can  never  express 

The  sweet  comfort  and  peace 
Of  a  soul  in  its  earliest  love  ! 


HENLE  V. 

MUSIC   BY   LOWELL  MASON.      "  THE   HALLELUJAH." 

This  was  an  old  home  tune  greatly  beloved  a  half- 
century  ago. 

Words  by  Miss  Catherine  A.  Waterman,  of  Phila- 
delphia (Mrs.  Esling),  born  181 2.  She  was  a  member 
of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

Come  unto  me,  ye  who  are  heavy  laden, 
Come  unto  me,  ye  who  are  sore  oppressed, 

The  white-haired  sire,  the  young  and  tender  maiden, 
Come  unto  me,  and  I  will  give  you  rest. 


J   of  the  Turns. 


A^ors  of  Preludes, 


A  UTHORS  OF  PR  EL  UDES.  2 1 3 

THE   AUTHORS    OF   PRELUDES,  INTER- 
LUDES, AND  POSTLUDES. 

Preludes,  Interludes,  and  Postludes  form  a  part 
of  the  service  of  nearly  every  church.  When  pro- 
grammes are  printed,  as  is  often  the  case  for  festivals 
like  Christmas,  Easter,  and  anniversaries,  the  names  of 
the  authors  of  these  musical  services  appear,  as  Han- 
del, Bach,  Cherubini,  Batiste,  Guilmant,  YVeley, 
Buck,  etc.  A  large  proportion  of  the  worshippers 
seem  to  regard  these  services  as  mere  musical  exer- 
cises, useful  chiefly  to  excite  a  devotional  mood  of 
thought,  to  continue  it,  and  to  conclude  an  hour  of 
worship  and  dismiss  an  assembly.  To  devout  and  in- 
structed people  these  are  truly  parts  of  the  service, 
not  mere  mechanical  exercises;  and  they  are  very  ele- 
vating and  helpful  to  those  prepared  to  receive  them. 

Few  people  remain  in  the  church  during  the  post- 
lude.  The  few  who  do  so  are  usually  people  of  a  very 
religious  nature  or  of  especial  culture.  The  number 
who  linger  will  indicate  often  the  devoutness  as  well 
as  the  taste  of  the  congregation. 

"There  was  one  thing  Mendelssohn  could  never 
do,"  said  a  musician. 

uAnd  what  was  that?"  asked  a  friend. 

l<  Play  a  congregation  out  of  a  church." 

The  inspiration  of  this  great  master  was  sufficient 
to  continue  the  attention  till  the  last  note  fell  upon 
the  unwilling  ears. 

"  The  only  way  to  empty  the  church  while  he  is 


2i4  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

on  the  organ  seat,"  said  a  sexton,  "is  to  stop  the  bel- 
lows," which  he  one  day  did. 

There  are  but  few  organists  who  can  make  the 
organ  teach  and  preach,  and  who  regard  their  work 
as  a  spiritual  calling.  Batiste,  the  organist  of  the  his- 
torical St.  Eustache,  Paris,  used  to  make  himself  ac- 
quainted with  the  service  of  the  Sabbath  before  he 
went  to  the  organ.  He  then  sought  the  mood  of  the 
service,  and  when  he  began  to  improvise  he  arrested 
all  wandering  thoughts  and  feelings  and  brought 
them  into  sympathy  and  harmony  with  the  subject 
and  the  occasion. 

"I  never  sit  down  to  the  organ,"  said  the  beloved 
Christian  organist  of  the  musical  Ruggles  Street 
Church,  Boston,  "without  doing  my  best,  whether 
the  audience  be  lar^e  or  small."  The  music  in  this 
church  is  a  service,  and  the  organ  is  brought  into  har- 
mony with  the  thought  and  subject  of  the  service  and 
is  made  to  preach  the  gospel.  The  people  usually  re- 
main until  after  the  postlude,  and  many  come  to  be 
prepared  for  the  service  by  the  prelude. 

Is  your  organ  consecrated  to  its  work?  Is  it 
played  for  a  musical  display,  or  does  it  speak  for  God  ? 
Does  it  voice  the  spirit  of  the  gospel,  the  sermon,  and 
the  occasion  ? 

It  is  unnecessary  to  speak  of  the  great  tone  masters, 
like  Bach,  Mozart,  Handel,  as  the  authors  of  these  mu- 
sical services.  We  will  here  speak  of  those  organ 
poets  whose  works  and  aims  are  not  so  well  known. 

The  French  Revolution  produced  the  French  Acad- 


WELEY.  215 

emy  of  Music  as  a  school  of  martial  music  and  patriotic 
song.  Out  of  it  grew  the  Conservatoire,  under  the 
direction  of  Cherubini,  and  out  of  the  Conservatoire  a 
popular  school  of  organ  poets  arose,  such  as  Batiste, 
Weley,  Guilmant,  and  Saint-Saens.  There  are  few 
organ  programmes  for  any  special  occasion  on  which 
the  names  of  these  pupils  of  Cherubini  do  not  appear. 


CHE  RUB  I  XL 


Cherubini,  who  may  be  regarded  as  the  founder 
of  the  poetic  school  of  organ  music,  was  born  at  Flor- 
ence, 1760.  After  filling  Europe  with  music  he  was 
appointed  director  of  the  Conservatoire  in  1S22,  a 
position  which  he  continued  to  hold  for  twenty  years. 
He  made  it  one  of  the  finest  schools  for  the  composition 
and  execution  of  sacred  music.  He  published  his 
famous  "Requiem"  for  male  voices  when  he  was 
seventy-six  years  of  age.     He  died  in  1842. 

Few  teachers  were  ever  so  beloved  by  their  pupils 
as  was  Cherubini.  He  had  a  very  affectionate  and 
spiritual  nature,  which  was  inspiring  to  all  who  came 
under  its  influence.  His  favorite  pupil  was  the  great 
organ-teacher  Halevy,  who  attended  him  to  the  last 
like  a  son.  Among  his  other  famous  pupils  were  Au- 
ber  and  Zimmerman. 


WELEY. 


Weley,    whose    pastoral    music    and    descriptive 
thunder-storm  have  made  his  work  familiar  even  to  the 


216  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

popular  ear,  was  born  in  1 817.  His  father  was  organ- 
ist of  St.  Roche.  The  boy  learned  the  scale  before  he 
knew  the  alphabet.  At  the  age  of  eight  he  could  play 
a  whole  mass.  His  master  was  Halevy.  At  the  age 
of  fifteen  he  gained  prizes  for  organ  counterpoint  and 
fugue.  He  began  to  improvise  on  the  organ  of  St. 
Roche,  and  soon  became  famous  for  his  inspirational 
playing.  This  power  of  producing  musical  moods 
placed  him  at  the  head  of  a  new  school  of  organ  mu- 
sic, which  combined  melody  and  sentiment  with 
science.  In  1847  ne  was  appointed  organist  of  the 
Madeleine. 

He  was  severely  criticised  by  the  advocates  of  the 
more  severe  methods  of  music,  for  his  playing  often 
violated  all  the  mechanical  rules  of  art.  His  whole 
aim  was  to  make  the  organ  express  the  spirit  of  the 
occasion,  to  influence,  mellow,  preach.  Rossini  said  to 
him  one  day,  "  People  seem  to  like  you  as  much  for 
your  artistic  faults  as  for  your  good  qualities." 

His  playing  exhausted  him.  He  experienced  a 
great  loss  of  nervous  force  in  his  musical  moods.  One 
day,  after  his  health  had  begun  to  fail,  a  friend  desired 
him  to  play  at  his  wedding.  "  I  will  do  so  if  I  can," 
he  promised.  He  went  to  the  church  with  much  ex- 
ertion. As  he  stood  at  the  foot  of  the  organ  stairs,  he 
heard  the  signal  that  the  wedding  procession  was  com- 
ing. A  long  flight  of  steps  led  up  to  the  organ.  He 
felt  unequal  to  the  exertion,  but  with  sudden  resolution 
flew  up  the  steps.  He  stopped  at  the  top,  had  a 
coughing  spell   and   a   hemorrhage,  and  then   threw 


WHITING.  217 

himself  upon  the  organ-seat  and  gave   to   friendship 
one  of  his  last  efforts. 


BA  TISTE. 


Axtoixe  Edouard  Batiste  was  born  in  Paris, 
1820.  He  was  admitted  to  the  Conservatoire  in  1828. 
He  was  a  page  of  the  Chapel  Royal,  became  a  lover  of 
organ  music,  and  was  appointed  teacher  of  lyric  and 
sacred  music  at  an  early  age.  He  became  organist  of 
St.  Nicholas',  and  subsequently  of  the  old  historic 
church  of  St.  Eustache. 


WHITING. 


America  has  a  creditable  record  in  the  production 
of  organ  preludes  and  postludes.  Conspicuous  among 
the  writers  of  such  compositions  are  Geo.  E.  Whiting 
and  Dudley  Buck.  Mr.  Whiting  was  born  at  Hollis- 
ton,  Mass.,  1842.  He  began  to  study  music  at  five 
years,  with  his  brother,  who  was  an  organist  at  Spring- 
field. At  the  age  of  thirteen  he  appeared  in  public  as 
an  organist.  Two  years  later  he  succeeded  Dudley 
Buck  as  organist  in  Hartford,  Conn.  He  studied  with 
Morgan,  went  to  England,  and  became  a  pupil  of  Best. 
He  afterwards  studied  in  Berlin,  under  Riidecke.  In 
1874  he  became  the  organist  of  the  famous  grand  organ 
at  Music  Hall,  Boston,  and  was  the  principal  organ 
teacher  in  the  New  England  Conservatory.     He  went 


TO 


218      THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

to  Cincinnati  as  organist  of  the  College  of  Music,  but 
returned  to  Boston  to  the  New  England  Conservatory. 
He  has  published  several  works  for  the  organ  which 
are  rich  in  preludes,  and  these  preludes  are  played 
everywhere  and  have  become  an  almost  universal  call 

to  devotion. 

♦ 

DUDLEY  BUCK. 

Dudley  Buck  was  born  in  Hartford,  1839.  Musi- 
cal inspiration  filled  his  youth,  and  "what  the  boy 
admired,  the  youth  desired,  and  the  man  acquired." 
He  studied  in  Leipzig  under  the  greatest  masters,  and 
subsequently  in  Dresden,  giving  special  attention  to 
the  works  of  Bach.  After  three  years  in  Germany  he 
went  to  Paris,  and  acquainted  himself  with  organists 
and  music  of  the  melodious  school.  He  returned  to 
America,  served  as  organist  in  several  conspicuous 
positions,  and  among  them  in  Boston  Music  Hall.  His 
music  is  much  employed  in  the  playing  of  preludes, 
interludes,  and  postludes. 


FELIX  ALEXANDRE  GUILMANT. 

This  organ  poet  was  born  at  Boulogne,  1837.  His 
"Cradle  Song,"  "Wedding  March,"  and  "Chant 
Seraphic"  are  well  known.  The  last  beautiful  com- 
position was  written  for  the  dedication  of  the  great 
organ  in  Notre  Dame  Cathedral,  Paris,  and  was  in- 
scribed to  the  memory  of  the  composer's  mother. 


DEVOTIONAL  PRELUDES.  219 

An  organist  can  often  lead  the  devotional  thought 
by  introducing  some  old  melody  like  one  of  Luther's 
chorals,  or  some  once-loved  revival  hymn,  and  impro- 
vising upon  it.  Among  the  writers  of  such  music  the 
late  Mr.  Rider,  of  Tremont  Temple,  Boston,  may  be 
mentioned  for  his  highly  devotional  work.  "Old 
Hundred  "  may  be  so  used,  or  "Olmutz,"  or  Billings' 
11  Majesty,"  or  the  "Star  of  Bethlehem."  "Nearer, 
my  God,  to  thee  "  is  always  appropriate  for  variations 
of  melody  that  rightly  elevate  the  thought. 

How  can  congregations  be  made  to  appreciate  pre- 
ludes, interludes,  and  postludes?  Only  by  education. 
But  how  can  this  be  secured? 

Have  in  each  church  a  series  of  lectures  on  the 
writers  of  organ  music.  Let  these  lectures  be  illustra- 
ted on  the  organ,  as  "An  evening  with  Handel,"  "An 
evening  with  Rossini,"  "An  evening  with  Cherubini," 
"An  evening  with  German  composers,"  "An  evening 
with  American  composers."  When  a  congregation 
understands  what  a  prelude  means,  that  prelude  be- 
comes to  them  a  religious  poem.  It  conveys  to  them 
the  same  religious  thought  and  feeling  as  the  playing 
of  Gregorian  music,  or  the  old  choral,  or  the  "Adeste 
Fideles,"  or  "Old  Hundred."  People  unwillingly 
listen  to  what  they  do  not  understand,  and  gladly  to 
what  they  comprehend. 

Let  a  selection  from  the  "Messiah,"  "Elijah,"  or 
other  familiar  work  be  played,  and  there  settles  upon 
the  congregation  the  attitude  of  devout  attention.  Va- 
riations on  a  well-known  hvmn  or  touching  religious 


22o  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

ballad  at  once  produce  the  devotional  mood  in  a  body 
of  worshippers. 

If  the  church  employs  these  services,  it  surely  be- 
comes its  duty  to  instruct  the  people  in  these  services. 
There  should  be  nothing  meaningless  in  the  house  of 
God.  An  organist  with  an  empty  heart  has  no  place 
there,  nor  any  composition  that  expresses  nothing  to 
the  soul.  Every  organist  should  be  a  Batiste  in  the 
method  and  conscientiousness  of  his  work,  and  every 
work  that  is  offered  as  a  religious  service  to  a  con^re- 
gation  should  be  made  intelligible  to  that  congregation. 

We  have  abridged  these  notices  from  articles  fur- 
nished to  the  "Musical  Visitor''  by  the  editor. 


Praise-A/|eetir^  Anecdotes, 


PRAISE-MEETING  ANECDOTES.  223 

PRAISE-MEETING  ANECDOTES  OF  THE 
MISSION  OF  MUSIC. 

The  simple  Scottish  air,  "Come  to  Jesus,"  used 
to  be  sung  at  Jerry  McAuley's  Mission,  and  the  assur- 
ance, "  He  will  save  you,"  was  a  powerful  influence 
in  awakening  resolution  to  overcome  evil. 

The  funeral  of  Jerry  McAuley  was  such  as  New 
York  city  had  never  seen  before.  It  was  a  golden 
September  day.  The  church  in  which  the  services 
were  to  be  held  wras  crowded.  The  streets  in  the 
vicinity  were  filled  with  waiting  people. 

In  the  great  throng  that  crowded  church  and  street 
were  ministers,  philanthropists,  merchants,  thieves, 
confidence  men,  women  with  painted  faces,  children  in 
rags.  Before  the  pulpit,  amid  the  sweetness  of  flow- 
ers, lay  the  dead  form  of  a  man  who  was  once  a  river- 
thief.  On  the  black  drapery  of  the  wall  back  of  the 
pulpit  were  these  words,  the  last  words  of  him  whose 
life  the  crowd  had  come  to  honor: 

"It  is  all  right!" 

At  the  age  of  thirteen  this  man  had  landed  from 
an  emigrant  ship  in  the  great,  crowded,  wicked  city. 
Alone  in  the  wilderness  of  homes,  he  made  the  ac- 
quaintance and  friendship  of  the  low,  the  idle,  and 
the  vicious.  He  became  a  prize-fighter,  a  drunkard, 
a  river-thief,  and  for  his  crimes  was  sentenced  to  Sing 
Sing. 

But  the  life  he  led  troubled  his  conscience.     Weary 


224  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

and  sick  of  sin,  he  sought  to  escape  it.  In  his  seek- 
ing he  found  good  men  ready  to  help  him.  Soon 
there  sprang  up  in  his  heart  an  almost  patriarchal 
faith — a  faith  that  the  Spirit  of  God  was  able  to 
change  his  sinful  nature;  that  a  new  life,  through  a 
spiritual  birth,  was  possible  to  him. 

By  it  he  was  led  to  receive  the  truth  with  simple 
trust,  believing  that  the  Spirit  of  God  would  help 
him  to  overcome  his  evil  desires,  and  thus  he  would 
become  a  new  man  in  right  living  and  in  true  and 
faithful  service  to  a  divine  Master. 

One  day  he  stood  up  in  a  mission-chapel  and  said, 
"I  stand  here  to-night  a  monument  of  God's  grace, 
saved  and  kept  by  his  power  from  everything  that  is 
sinful  and  bad — from  drinking,  gambling,  stealing, 
from  being  a  public  nuisance,  yes,  a  walking  rag- 
shop — changed  inside  and  outside,  thank  God.  There 
may  be  some  poor  fellow  here  to-night  without  a 
friend,  without  any  character  left,  without  a  home.  If 
God  saved  me  and  has  kept  me,  he  will  do  the  same 
for  you  if  you  will  only  let  him.  And  trusting  to  his 
help,  seek  to  save  yourself." 

Faith  had  saved  him.  It  saved  others.  He  estab- 
lished a  mission  in  the  most  criminal  and  dangerous 
part  of  the  city,  and  began  to  preach  there  the  one 
doctrine  of  moral  recovery  through  acceptance  of  a 
divine  Master  and  an  inward  experience  of  spiritual 
aid  furnished  to  a  struggling  soul  by  the  Spirit  of 
God. 

Year  by  year  the  work  went  on.     Some  of  the 


PRAISE- MEETING  ANECDOTES.  225 

most  abandoned  criminals  were  led  to  give  themselves 
to  this  man's  Master  and  to  enter  upon  the  new  life. 
These  experiences  multiplied  and  became  an  influ- 
ence. People  wondered  at  its  power.  .  The  story  of 
the  mission  of  Jerry  McAuley  filled  the  city  and  the 
country.  The  mission  itself  became  a  monument  of 
faith. 

And  so  on  that  calm  September  day  thoughtful 
men  gathered  among  the  most  depraved  people  to 
respect  the  memory  of  the  dead  river-thief.  They  saw 
a  truth  of  Scripture  as  many  of  them  had  never  seen 
it  before:  u  If  any  man  be  in  Christ,  he  is  a  new  crea- 
ture." 

Faith  has  her  conquests  age  by  age,  and  such  a 
man  is  a  conqueror.  Notorious  Jerry  McAuley,  vic- 
torious through  Him  who  loved  him,  and  to  whom  he 
had  given  himself  in  an  everlasting  covenant !  Tears 
fell  like  rain  on  his  grave,  and  thousands  of  silent 
hearts  and  prayers  pronounced  over  it  their  benedic- 
tions, and  thus  testified  to  the  power  of  his  life. 

■Multitudes  of  men  and  women  more  favored  by 
circumstances  might  light  their  torch  of  faith  at  the 
taper  of  this  poor  man,  and  gain  strength  to  overcome 
some  inward  evil  when  he  overcame  so  many  out- 
ward sins.  Such  a  faith  is  for  all;  and  for  all  who 
seek  it  in  earnest  is  the  promise  of  the  same  overcom- 
ing power. 

"  He  will  save  you— just  now. 

"  Only  trust  him— just  now." 

Story  of  the  Tunet.  IO* 


226  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUXES. 

RAY  PALMER'S  SPIRITUAL  EXPERIENCES. 

Rev.  Charles  S.  Robinson,  D.  D.,  in  an  article 
in  the  "Congregationalist"  on  the  Praise  Service,  gives 
some  recollections  of  Rev.  Ray  Palmer  which  the  con- 
ductors of  services  of  song  may  very  profitably  use. 
We  give  an  extract  from  the  article: 

Dr.  Palmer  was  born  at  Little  Compton,  R.  I., 
November  12,  1808,  and  was  graduated  from  Yale 
College  in  1830.  After  his  theological  education  was 
finished  he  went  to  Bath,  Me.,  where  he  had  charge 
of  the  Central  Congregational  Church  for  fifteen  years. 
He  was  pastor  of  the  First  Congregational  Church  in 
Albany  from  1850  to  1865.  He  then  acted  as  secretary 
of  the  American  Congregational  Union,  and  resided 
several  years  in  New  York  city.  Subsequently  he 
was  engaged  in  pastoral  work  in  the  Belleville  Ave- 
nue Church  of  Newark,  N.  J.,  until  his  death,  March 
29,  1887.  Thus  he  lived  full  of  honors,  labored  with 
unusual  success,  and  went  to  his  rest  loved  and  wept 
by  all. 

The  story  of  his  sacred  song,  uMy  faith  looks  up 
to  Thee,"  the  most  famous  perhaps,  and  certainly  one 
of  the  most  useful,  belonging  to  modern  times,  has 
been  often  told.  The  author,  Dr.  Ray  Palmer,  gave 
the  facts  some  years  ago  to  a  religious  paper  in  Lon- 
don; he  said  it  was  written  in  New  York  in  the  house 
of  a  lady  who  kept  the  school  in  which  he  was  a 
teacher.  It  was  not  prompted  by  any  outward  cir- 
cumstances, nor  had  it  any  special  call  as  a  composi- 


PRAISE-MEETING  ANECDOTES.  227 

tion.  He  was  then  in  poor  health  and  was  near 
twenty-two  years  of  age.  "It  was  born  in  my  heart 
and  demanded  expression, "  the  poet  has  revealed 
since.  "There  was  not  the  slightest  thought  of  wri- 
ting  for  another  eye,  least  of  all  of  writing  a  hymn 
for  Christian  worship.  I  gave  form  to  what  I  felt,  by 
writing  the  stanzas,  with  little  effort.  I  recollect  I 
wrote  them  with  very  tender  emotion  and  penned 
the  last  line  with  tears. "  This  was  in  1830,  and  the 
poem  did  not  see  the  light  again  till  1833.  Lowell 
Mason  and  Thomas  Hastings  were  then  compiling  a 
small  book  called  "Spiritual  Songs  for  Social  Wor- 
ship;" it  was  a  passing  request  made  by  Dr.  Mason 
that  Dr.  Palmer  would  contribute  to  this,  which 
brought  out  the  hitherto  unknown  piece  of  poetry,  in 
the  recesses  of  a  pocket-book.  They  were  in  Boston 
at  the  time.  While  the  compiler  waited,  the  composer 
went  into  a  convenient  store  and  copied  the  verses 
without  any  comment  on  either  side;  then  each  pro- 
ceeded on  his  way.  Dr.  Mason  wrote  for  the  hymn 
the  tune  "Olivet,"  which  has  kept  its  company  for 
all  these  wedded  years  with  a  sweet  fidelity  that  no 
loving  man  has  ever  dared  to  disturb.  Two  or  three 
days  later  Mr.  Mason  said,  as  he  met  his  friend  again, 
"  Mr.  Palmer,  you  may  live  many  years,  and  do  many 
good  things,  but  I  believe  you  will  be  best  known  to 
posterity  as  the  author  of  the  hymn  '  My  faith  looks 
up  to  Thee.'" 

At   the  time  of    Dr.    Ray  Palmer's   death  it  was 
feared  by  some  who  loved  him  very  much,  so  com- 


228  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

manding  was  the  fame  of  "My  faith  looks  up  to 
Thee,"  "that  its  author  was  in  danger  of  being  con- 
sidered "a  hymnist  of  one  hymn."  Few  singers,  on 
sudden  call,  could  repeat  a  list  of  first  lines  by  which 
his  best  compositions  besides  that  might  be  chosen  for 
a  funeral  service  in  the  various  churches.  None  of 
them  had,  in  all  the  years,  become  as  familiar  as  that 
one.  Now  it  is  known  that  he  himself  thought  "Je- 
sus, these  eyes  have  never  seen"  to  be  his  best  pro- 
duction, certainly  next  to  that  earliest  of  them  all. 
It  was  one  of  its  stanzas,  the  last  in  number,  which 
he  was  overheard  to  repeat,  in  his  feebleness,  on  the 
day  before  he  died;  and  he  was  wont  to  call  attention 
modestly  to  it  when  he  was  questioned  by  the  com- 
pilers who  wished  to  know  his  preferences. 
The  verse  referred  to  is  the  following: 

"When  death  these  mortal  eyes  shall  seal, 
And  still  this  throbbing  heart, 
The  rending  veil  shall  Thee  reveal 
All  glorious  as  Thou  art." 

The  hymn  was  composed  in  Albany,  N.  Y.,  in 
1850;  he  entitled  it,  "Unseen — but  not  Unknown," 
and  affixed  to  it  a  clause  from  1  Pet.  1:8.  The  publi- 
cation of  it  was  first  made  in  the  "Sabbath  Hymn- 
Book. "  The  venerable  author  in  person  related  the 
origin  of  it,  disclosing  a  curious  experience,  which,  to 
those  who  knew  him,  illustrates  a  certain  kind  of  mys- 
ticism in  the  devotion  and  affection  he  felt  for  the 
Saviour,  characteristic  of  some  of  his  highest  moods. 
He  said  he  was  seated  at  his  study  table  preparing  a 


PRAISE- MEE  TING  AKECD O  TES.  229 

sermon  which  had  Christ  for  its  special  theme.  Need- 
ing a  volume  in  his  closed  bookcase,  he  arose  and 
opened  the  door.  To  his  surprise,  the  very  book  ap- 
peared just  at  his  hand.  At  once  this  suggested  to  his 
imagination  the  theme. 


FRAXCES  RIDLEY  HA  J  ERG A  ES  MUSIC. 

Miss  Havergal  was  a  true  poet  as  well  as  writer 
of  hymns.  Her  "Ascension  Hymn"  tune,  to  her 
own  words,  "Golden  Harps  are  Sounding,"  is  well 
known.  "  HavergaPs  Psalmody"  contains  her  musi- 
cal compositions. 

Her  work  was  very  conscientiously  done.  "  If  I 
am  to  write  to  any  good  purpose,  a  great  deal  of  living 
must  go  to  a  very  little  writing,"  she  once  said. 

Her  life  conformed  to  this  principle.  What  she 
wrote  was  the  fruit  of  experience,  and  she  consecrated 
her  life  to  those  duties  that  would  give  her  the  richest 
and  most  helpful  experience  out  of  which  to  write. 

Miss  Havergal  died  at  Caswell  Bay,  Swansea,  in 
1S79,  at  the  age  of  forty-three.  How  her  own  life 
was  an  illustration  of  her  conviction  that  a  "great 
deal"  of  right  "living"  must  be  the  basis  of  worthy 
and  helpful  writing,  may  be  seen  in  her  education, 
training,  and  benevolent  work. 

She  had  a  beautiful  voice  for  singing.  This  she 
cultivated  in  a  most  conscientious  manner  and  de- 
voted to  the  work  of  God.  Her  musical  memory  was 
so  wonderful  that   she  could  play  the  best   works  of 


23o  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Handel,  Beethoven,  and  Mendelssohn  without  notes. 
She  was  a  popular  solo  singer  in  choral  societies,  but 
she  resolved,  almost  in  her  girlhood,  that  she  would 
only  sing  such  selections  as  were  intended  for  the 
moral  and  spiritual  good  of  others. 

14  Singing  for  God,"  she  said,  "is  to  me  the  most 
personal  and  direct  commission  I  hold  from  my  Mas- 
ter."    She  was  true  to  her  trust. 

Her  musical  studies  prepared  the  way  for  the 
writing  of  her  hymns,  but  her  heart  preparation  grew 
out  of  home  mission  work.  It  was  the  ambition  of 
her  girlhood  to  become  a  foreign  missionary.  Cir- 
cumstances prevented.  Disappointed,  she  resolved  to 
devote  herself  to  benevolent  work  among  the  poor  and 
suffering  in  her  father's  parish. 

She  was  an  active  worker  in  the  home  Sunday- 
school,  the  Church  Missionary  Society,  and  the  Aid 
Societies.  She  gave  Bible  readings  in  the  servants' 
halls.  She  was  constantly  seeking  to  relieve  the 
wants  of  the  poor,  and  she  induced  nearly  all  of  the 
young  people  and  the  larger  number  of  the  adults  in 
the  town  to  sign  the  temperance  pledge. 

Out  of  the  experiences  of  such  right  living  grew 
her  hymns  and  music,  which  are  known  in  all  intelli- 
gent Christian  homes. 

A  single  illustration  will  afford  a  view  of  her 
manner  of  work  in  the  field  of  duty  and  with  the 
pen: 

"Perhaps  you  will  be  interested  to  know  the 
origin  of  the  consecration  hymn,  (  Take  my  life.'     I 


PRAISE- MEETING  ANECDOTES.  231 

went  for  a  little  visit  of  five  days.  There  were  ten 
persons  in  the  house  whom  I  desired  to  turn  to  the 
helps  and  comforts  of  a  religious  life.  He  gave  me 
the  prayer,  'Lord,  give  me  all  in  this  house  V  and  he 
did  !  Before  I  left  the  house  every  one  had  sought 
a  spiritual  life.  The  last  night  of  my  visit  I  was  too 
happy  to  sleep,  and  passed  most  of  the  night  in  praise 
and  renewal  of  my  own  consecration,  and  these  little 
couplets  fanned  themselves  and  chimed  in  my  heart 
one  after  another,  till  they  finished  with  '  Ever,  only, 
all  for  thee!'" 

When  this  frail  woman  died,  love  covered  her 
memory  with  its  mantle,  and  the  hands  of  the  poor 
strewed  her  grave  with  flowers.  The  songs  of  her 
heart  went  over  the  world,  the  seeds  of  the  experiences 
that  claim  the  hopes  and  promises  of  heaven. 


JEXXY  LIXD'S  MOTIVE. 

Years  ago  we  heard  Jenny  Lind  sing  in  the 
"  Messiah."  She  revealed,  by  her  rendering  of  u  I 
know  that  my  Redeemer  liveth,"  the  ability  of  song 
to  interpret  the  sublimest  of  themes. 

She  sang,  "Though  worms  destroy  this  body,  yet 
in  my  flesh  I  shall  see  God,"  with  a  tone  and  a  phra- 
sing that  made  the  doctrine  of  the  resurrection  lu- 
minous. 

"  She  must  be  a  Christian,"  we  mused  as  we  went 
out  from  the  concert  hall,  u  else  she  could  never  have 


232  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

given  these  vivid  expositions  of  faith  in  the  Lord  who 
rose  again  from  the  dead." 

The  musing  of  forty  years  ago  was  confirmed  the 
other  day  by  reading  the  reminiscences  of  the  Rev. 
C.  A.  Wilkinson,  the  English  chaplain  to  the  King  of 
Hanover.  He  met  Jenny  L,ind  just  after  she  had 
signed  her  contract  to  sing  in  the  United  States. 

In  the  course  of  their  conversation  she  mentioned 
the  great  ignorance  of  the  lower  classes  in  Stockholm, 
and  their  indifference  to  the  education  of  their  chil- 
dren. 

"I  have,"  she  said,  "determined  to  endow  schools 
for  these  poor  little  children.  My  motive  in  going  to 
America  is  to  earn  thirty-six  thousand  pounds,  which 
I  intend  to  hand  over  to  trustees  who  will  carry  out 
my  plans. 

u  May  I  not,  sir,  hope  for  God's  blessing  upon  this 
work,  undertaken  for  the  lambs  of  Christ's  flock? 
My  daily  prayer  is  that  I  may  be  spared  three  years, 
so  that  I  may  carry  out  my  plans  for  my  poor  children 
in  Stockholm.  Is  there  anything  in  that  prayer  in- 
consistent with  submission  to  the  will  of  God?" 

One  morning,  after  a  charity  concert  which  she 
had  given,  the  clergyman  found  her  counting  and 
sealing  up  the  money  received,  preparatory  to  dis- 
tributing it  among  the  poor.  He  began  compliment- 
ing her,  but  she  cut  him  short  by  saying, 

"It  is  the  only  return  I  can  make  unto  the  good 
Lord  for  the  gift  he  has  bestowed  upon  me,  which  is 
the   great  joy  of   my   life.       I    can   only  repay   him 


PRAISE- MEETING  ANECDOTES.  233 

through  the  poor  and  the  suffering.  This  I  delight 
to  do." 

When  Bishop  Stanley  of  Norwich,  the  father  of 
Dean  Stanley,  was  sneered  at  for  receiving  "a  pro- 
fessional singer  into  the  Episcopal  palace,"  the  "pro- 
fessional" being  Jenny  Lind,  he  replied, 

"I  always  wish  to  honor  virtue  and  talent  wher- 
ever I  may  find  them.  As  to  my  friendship  with 
Jenny  Lind,  I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  I  con- 
sider that  I  am  the  person  benefited.  For  I  never 
converse  with  her  without  feeling  myself  a  better 
man." 

The  chaplain  says  he  indorses  that  compliment  as 
the  literal  truth,  for  he  himself  never  departed  from 
her  society  without  feeling  himself  a  better,  man  for 
having  conversed  with  her. 

Her  soul  and  heart  seemed  absorbed  in  the  thought 
of  obeying  St.  James'  rule: 

"  Pure  religion  and  undefiled  before  God  and  the 
Father  is  this,  to  visit  the  fatherless  and  widows  in 
their  affliction,  and  to  keep  himself  unspotted  from 

the  WOrld."  "Youth's  Companion." 


A  GRAND  THANKSGIVING. 

That  was  a  memorable  Thanksgiving  when,  in 
the  early  spring  of  1493,  Columbus  returned  from  his 
first  voyage  of  discovery  to  *Palos,  and  hastened  to 
meet  the  Spanish  sovereigns  at  Barcelona.  Columbus 
was  a  man  of  faith.      "God  made  me  the  messein-er 


234  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

of  the  new  heavens  and  the  new  earth,"  he  said  in 
his  old  age,  "and  told  me  where  to  find  them."  It 
was  this  patriarchal  faith  that  inspired  him  to  weigh 
the  earth  and  to  travel  the  unknown  seas. 

Palos  throbbed  with  excitement  as  the  banner  of 
the  cross  and  crowns  of  Columbus  rose  above  the 
wave  and  streamed  into  the  harbor.  The  bells  rang. 
On  landing,  Columbus  and  his  crew  went  to  the  prin- 
cipal church,  accompanied  by  the  whole  population, 
and  offered  up  solemn  thanksgivings  for  the  success  of 
the  expedition.  Columbus  hastened  to  Barcelona  to 
meet  the  Court.     His  journey  was  a  triumphal  march. 

It  was  the  middle  of  April,  the  month  of  night- 
ingales and  flowers.  Columbus  entered  the  city  amid 
music,  bells,  and  shouts  of  triumph.  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella,  seated  under  a  superb  canopy,  received  him 
as  a  viceroy  rather  than  an  admiral,  and  requested 
him  to  relate  to  them  the  history  of  his  voyage.  He 
did  so,  surrounded  by  the  Indians  whom  he  had 
brought  with  him,  with  their  gay  plumes,  and  offer- 
ings of  tropic  birds  and  fruits. 

As  he  ended  his  wonderful  narrative,  there  arose  a 
burst  of  music  and  bore  away  to  heaven  the  thoughts 
of  the  sovereigns  and  nobles  and  people,  already 
thrilled  and  melted  by  the  most  marvellous  tale  ever 
told  of  human  achievement. 

It  was  the  chapel-chpir  of  Isabella. 

"We  praise  thee,  O  God;  we  acknowledge  thee  to 
be  the  Lord;  all  the  earth  doth  worship  thee,  the  Fa- 
ther everlasting." 


PRAISE- MEETING  ANECDOTES.  235 

The  majestic  Latin  hymn  swept  on  until  it  reached 
the  sublime  words, 

"Holy,  holy,  Lord  God  of  hosts;  heaven  and  earth 
are  full  of  the  majesty  of  thy  glory  I" 

It  was  perhaps  the  most  happy  moment  of  Colum- 
bus' life — this  first  thanksgiving  for  the  new  world. 


Lectures  on  the  favorite  hymns  of  the  Christian 
church,  illustrated  by  praise  services,  have  long  been 
popular.  Lectures  on  the  tunes,  illustrated  in  like 
manner,  may  be  made  profitable.  The  writer  has 
frequently  given  such  lectures  in  Boston  and  its  vicin- 
ity and  has  sought  to  use  the  tunes  in  this  way,  not 
as  a  mere  matter  of  history  and  entertainment,  but  as 
a  narrative  of  religious  experience.  In  such  lectures 
it  is  well  to  select  the  tunes  that  voice  a  spiritual  his- 
tory, to  relate  the  author's  experience,  and  then  have 
the  tune  sung. 

A  tune  like  the  "Adeste  Fideles"  mav  be  made 
the  text  of  a  talk  on  Christmas  church  music.  "Palm 
Branches"  may  serve  as  the  text  for  a  talk  on  Easter 
music.  "Hallelujah!  what  a  Saviour!"  may  serve 
as  an  evening  topic  for  a  lecture  on  the  life  and  work 
of  P.  P.  Bliss.  So  also  an  evening  lecture  may  be 
given  to  Dykes  with  profit,  to  Lowell  Mason  or  George 
F.  Root,  using  in  each  case  the  tunes  of  these  com- 
posers. An  evening  with  the  tunes  of  the  Reforma- 
tion, or  with  the  Wesleyan  hymns  and  tunes,  or  the 
Scotch    tunes,    might    be    made  spiritually   helpful. 


236  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"America"  might  afford  the  text  for  an  evening  talk 
on  national  music  and  Christian  patriotism,  and  the 
"Missionary  Hymn"  for  a  talk  on  missionary  music 
and  its  influence  in  heathen  lauds.  In  large  churches 
there  might  profitably  be  lectures  on  postludes,  pre- 
ludes, and  interludes,  which  would  be  really  a  history 
of  the  oratorios. 

It  may  well  concern  every  leader  of  a  praise  ser- 
vice to  inquire  of  the  singers  if  they  have  indeed  the 
knowledge  of  this  new  spiritual  song — the  song  of  life, 
the  song  of  triumph  in  view  of  death,  the  alphabet  of 
the  eternal  harmony  of  heaven.  Have  they  that  from 
which  the  new  song  springs — the  "new  heart,"  the 
"new  spirit,"  the  "new  life"?  Has  the  harmony  of 
the  soul  with  God  begun  in  them?  the  harmony 
which  pervades  the  life  of  the  renewed  on  earth, 
which  lifts  over  death  the  song  of  deliverance,  and 
prepares  the  whole  spiritual  being  for  the  celestial 
choirs  ? 


Tlie  New  SoM. 


77//:"  NEW  SONG,  239 


THE  NEW  SONG. 

WE   know  not  how  far  the  poetic   conception   of 

Waller  may  be  true: 

"  The  soul's  dark  cottage,  battered  and  decayed, 
Lets  in  new  light  through  chinks  that  time  has  made; 
Stronger  by  weakness,  wiser  men  become 
As  they  draw  near  to  their  eternal  home: 
Leaving  the  old,  both  worlds  at  once  they  view 
That  stand  upon  the  threshold  of  the  new." 

But  the  new  spiritual  life  is  a  song  of  the  soul.  It 
is  the  beginning  of  spiritual  harmony  with  God,  and 
its  natural  expression  is  the  melody  of  praise.  Heaven 
in  the  Scriptures  is  pictured  as  full  of  song.  The 
utterance  of  regeneration  is  song;  of  sanctification, 
song;  of  glorification,  song. 

Song  is  often  the  first  and  most  natural  outflow  of 
a  Christian  life  on  earth.  The  new  song  begins  in  the 
soul  before  the  gates  of  the  unseen  world  open  and  the 
glory  of  God  is  revealed.  We  have  referred  to  the 
last  hours  of  Oliver  Holden,  the  author  of  the  hymn- 
tune  "Coronation,"  and  to  the  music  that  seemed  to 
fill  his  soul.  The  last  hours  of  Bradbury  were  as 
beautiful.  Chopin  and  Mozart  died  seeking  the  con- 
solations of  song,  but  to  Holden  and  Bradbury  the 
new  song  seemed  itself  to  come. 

We  are  not  to  look  for  surprises  in  life's  last  hour, 
nor  to  expect  to  hear  the  new  song  with  mortal  ears. 
But  the  rest  of  love  after  the  hard  service  of  life  brines 
to  many  a  harmony  of  spiritual  trust  and  elevation 
like  an  even-son^. 


24o  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"Do  you  see,"  said  Edmund  Auger,  "that  blessed 
assembly  who  await  my  arrival  ?  Do  you  hear  that 
sweet  music  with  which  holy  men  invite  me,  that  I 
may  henceforth  be  a  partaker  of  their  happiness? 
How  delightful  it  is  to  be  in  the  society  of  blessed 
spirits!     Let  us  go!     We  must  go!     Let  me  go!" 

A  like  sense  of  harmony  with  spiritual  things 
marked  the  last  hours  of  Bishop  Haven.     Says  one: 

"Groups  gathered  round  his  death-bed  to  muse 
over  the  transition  from  death  unto  life. 

"  'It  is  so  pleasant,  so  beautiful,  so  delightful,  dy- 
ing!' said  the  bishop.  'The  angels  are  here.  God 
lifts  me  up  so  in  his  arms,  I  cannot  see  the  river  of 
death.  There  is  no  river.  It  is  all  light.  I  am 
floating  away  from  earth  up  into  heaven.  I  am  gli- 
ding away  into  God.' 

"  'Good-night!'  said  an  old  friend,  as  he  turned  away. 

"  'Good-night!'  was  the  reply,  'but  when  we  meet 
again  it  will  be  Good-morning.' 

"And  so  was  fulfilled  the  word  of  the  prophet,  'At 
evening-time  it  shall  be  li^ht. '  There  w7as  no  niq-ht 
about  that  couch,  for  the  light  of  immortality  had 
touched  it." 

"  I  have  had  wealth,  power,  and  fame,"  said  Prince 
Albert,  when  near  his  end.  "  If  they  were  all  I  had, 
what  should  I  have  now?"  He  repeated  the  first 
lines  of  the  hymn  "Rock  of  Ages." 

An  old  German  choral  had  been  the  favorite  tune 
of  the  prince.  The  music  is  said  to  have  been  by 
Decius,  1524: 


THE  NE  W  SONG.  24 1 

"When  my  last  hour  is  close  at  hand, 

My  last  sad  journey  taken, 
Do  thou,  Lord  Jesus,  by  me  stand  ; 

Let  me  not  be  forsaken. 
O  Lord  !  my  spirit  I  resign 
Into  thy  loving  hands  divine  ; 

'T  is  safe  within  thy  keeping." 

This  song  of  his  life  became  a  picture  of  his  death, 
and  it  was  sung  at  his  funeral. 

Beautiful  is  the  hymn  in  which  Robert  Grant 
voiced  his  experience  in  the  active  days  of  his  Chris- 
tian service: 

"  Oh,  worship  the  King  all-glorious  above; 
Oh,  gratefully  sing  his  power  and  his  love ! 
Our  Shield  and  Defender,  the  Ancient  of  Days, 
Pa\  ilioned  in  splendor  and  girded  with  praise." 

Sweeter  yet  was  the  even-song  of  his  life: 

"And  now  in  age  and  grief  thy  name 
Does  still  my  languid  heart  inflame 

And  bow  my  faltering  knee. 
Oh,  yet  this  bosom  feels  the  fire, 
This  trembling  hand  and  drooping  lyre 

Has  yet  a  strain  for  thee. 

"  Yes,  broken,  tuneless,  yet,  O  Lord, 
This  voice  thy  mercy  shall  record, 

Thy  mercy  tried  so  long: 
Till  sinking  slow  with  calm  decay, 
Its  feeble  murmurs  melt  away 

Into  a  seraph's  song." 

But  death-triumphs  are  only  the  parting  chorus  of 
the  new  song.  The  spiritual  singing  in  the  soul  be- 
gins when  the  soul  has  its  first  sense  of  the  love  and 
forgiveness  of  God.  The  song  of  regeneration  and 
trust  is  the  first  note  of  the  new  song  that  shall  ascend 
into  heaven. 

The  Story  of  the  Tunes.  I  I 


242      THE  STOR  V  OF  THE  TUNES. 

The  new  son^  is  the  same  in  all  languages,  and  in 
it  all  true  Christian  hearts  the  world  around  unite, 
however  diverse  their  denominational  forms  and 
creeds.  It  is  destined  to  increase  in  volume  and  in 
harmony  till  the  whole  world  joins  in  it. 

"  One  song  employs  all  nations,  and  all  cry, 
'  Worthy  the  Lamb,  for  he  was  slain  for  us !' 

•The  dwellers  in  the  vales  and  on  the  rocks 
Shout  to  each  other,  and  the  mountain-tops 
From  distant  mountains  catch  the  flying  joy, 
Till,  nation  after  nation  taught  the  strain, 
Earth  rolls  the  rapturous  Hosanna  round." 

And  the  same  ever-new  song  all  will  continue  in 
heaven.  "The  Christian  singers  and  composers  of  all 
ages  will  be  there  to  join  in  the  song.  Thomas  Has- 
tings will  be  there.  Lowell  Mason  will  be  there. 
Bradbury  will  be  there.  Beethoven  and  Mozart  will 
be  there.  They  who  sounded  the  cymbals  and  the 
trumpets  in  the  ancient  temple  will  be  there.  The 
forty  thousand  harpers  that  stood  at  the  ancient  dedi- 
cation will  be  there.  The  two  hundred  singers  that 
assisted  on  that  day  will  be  there.  Patriarchs  who 
lived  amid  threshing-floors,  shepherds  who  watched 
amid  Judsean  hills,  prophets  who  walked  with  long 
beards  and  coarse  apparel,  pronouncing  woe  against 
ancient  abominations,  will  meet  the  more  recent  mar- 
tyrs who  went  up  with  leaping  cohorts  of  fire;  and 
some  will  speak  of  the  Jesus  of  whom  they  prophesied, 
and  others  of  the  Jesus  for  whom  they  died.  Oh, 
what  a  song!"  talmage. 


INDEX  AND  NOTES. 


Abt,  Franz  Wilhelm,  1819 15 

Adeste  Fideles ..15,  197 

Almost  Persuaded 17 

Ambrose 137,  175 

America 20 

American  Hymn 22 

Amsterdam 23 

Antioch 24 

Arkwright,  Mrs 177 

Arlington .__  25 

Arne,  Thomas  Augustine 25 

Arnheim 25 

Rev.  Elias  Nason,  in  the  "Gazette"  of  Massachusetts,  says  that  Dr.  Samuel 
Holyoke,  of  Boxford,  was  born  1762  and  died  1820.  So  "Arnheim"  dates 
with  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  w.  e.  CHUTE. 

Art  thou  weary  ? 

Music  arranged  by  Monk,  i860. 
Athens 202 

At  sea. 

Music  by  Dr.  Root.  Words  written  by  a  friend  of  Dr.  Root  on  the  ocean 
steamer  "  Circassian,"  and  sent  to  him  for  music. 

My  God,  on  seas  of  storm  and  calm 

I  pass  the  ocean  o'er, 
And  sing  to  thee  my  thankful  psalm 

Each  evening  nearer  shore. 
Thine  is  the  storm,  thine  is  the  calm, 

Wherever  I  may  be, 
And  nothing  shall  my  soul  alarm 

Upon  the  silent  sea. 

Auld  Lang  Syne _ 25 

Avison 26 


244  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Avison,  Charles,  1710-1783 26 

Bach,  Johann  Sebastian,  1685-1750 145 

Balerma 27 

Ball 199 

Barnby,  1838 143,  168,  198 

Bartholdy,  Felix  Mendelssohn,  1809-1847 63,  103 

Batiste,  Antoine  Edouard 217 

Battle  Hymn  of  Gustavus  Adolphus. 

The  chorale  was  written  by  Altenburg,  a  minister  in  Thuringia.  The  hymn 
was  written  by  the  King  of  Sweden  after  the  victory  of  Leipsic,  and  edited 
by  his  chaplain,  Dr.  Fabricius,  for  the  use  of  the  army  (1621).  Gustavus  sang 
this  hymn  with  his  army  before  the  battle  of  Lutzen,  1632,  in  which  battle  he 
met  death, 

Fear  not,  O  little  flock,  the  foe  As  true  as  God's  own  promise  stands, 

Who  madly  seeks  your  overthrow;  Not  earth  nor  hell  with  all  their  bands 

Dread  not  his  rage  and  power.  Against  us  shall  prevail ; 

What  though  your  courage  sometimes     The   Lord   shall    mock   them   from  his 
faints;  throne; 

This  seeming  triumph  o'er  God's  saints    God  is  with  us  ;  we  are  his  own  ; 
Lasts  but  a  little  hour.  Our  victory  cannot  fail ! 

Fear  not,  be  strong !  your  cause  belongs    Amen,  Lord  Jesus,  grant  our  prayer, 
To  him  who  can  avenge  your  wrongs  ;      Great    Captain,   now   thine  arm   make 

Leave  all  to  him,  your  Lord.  bare, 

Though  hidden  yet  from  mortal  eyes,  Thy  church  with  strength  defend ; 

Salvation  shall  for  you  arise  ;  So  shall  thy  saints  and  martyrs  raise 

He  girdeth  on  his  sword.  A  joyful  chorus  to  thy  praise 

Through  ages  without  end. 
gustavus  adolphus,  in  prose. 

JACOB  FABRICIUS. 

Tr.  by  miss  c  winkworth. 

Battle  Hymn  of  the  Republic 27 

Benevento 31 

Bethany 32 

Beyond  the  smiling  and  the  weeping " 32 

Billings,  William,  1746-1800 33,  Jo4>  2°7>  208 

Bishop,  Sir  H.  R.,  1786-1855 56 

Bliss,  P.  P.,  1838-1876 17,  40,  54,  60,  100,  119,  124,  141,  150,  160, 

177,  180,  181,  183,  184 

Bower  of  Prayer 33 

Boylston 32 


INDEX  AND  NOTES.  245 

Bradbury,  William  B.,  1816-1868 53,53,  114,  168,  199 

Brown,  Samuel  R.,  1810-18S0 114 

Browne,  Miss 177 

Buck,  Dudley 208 

Caldwell,  William,  1830 _.__ 207 

Calkin,  John  Baptiste,  1827 179 

Calvin's  Hymn. 

George  F.  Root  wrote  the  music  to  the  following: 

I  greet  thee,  who  my  sure   Redeemer  Thou  art  the  true  and  perfect  gentleness, 

art,  No  harshness  hast  thou  and  no    bitter- 
My  only  trust,  and  Saviour  of  my  heart,  ness  ; 

Who  so  much  toil  and  woe  Make  us  to  taste  and  prove, 

And  pain  ciiust  undergo  Make  us  adore  and  love 

For  my  poor,  worthless  sake.  The  sweet  grace  found  in  thee ; 

We  pray  thee  from  our  hearts,  With  longing  to  abide 

All  idle  griefs  and  smarts  Ever  at  thy  dear  side, 

U:And  foolish  cares  to  take.:ll  II: In  thy  sweet  unity. :ll 

Poor,  banished  exiles,  wretched  sons  of  Eve, 
Full  of  all  sorrows,  unto  thee  we  grieve, 
To  thee  we  bring  our  sighs, 
Our  groanings  and  our  cries, 
Thy  pity,  Lord,  we  crave  : 
We  take  the  sinner's  place, 
And  pray  thee,  of  thy  grace, 
ll:To  pardon  and  to  save.:ll 

Carey,  Henry 20 

Cherubini 215 

Chester 33 

China 35 

Christmas 201 

Christmas  Doxology 204 

Clarendon  Street. 

Leonard  Marshall,  a  Boston  composer  and  compiler  of  music,  and  a  once 
active  menber  of  the  Handel  and  Haydn  Society. 

Columbus'  Hymn 159 

This  is  commonly  called  the  "Ave  Maris  Stella.1'  It  was  in  reality  the 
"  Salve  Regina."  A  poem  in  "  Harper's  Bazar"  (Christmas  Number,  1889,) 
pictures  the  singing  of  the  hymn  as  the  first  Christmas  song  in  the  New 
World.     The  music  is  old  Italian. 

Columbus'  Thanksgiving 233 


246  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Come,  thou  fount  of  every  blessing. 
Music  by  Rev.  A.  Nettleton. 

"  Come  unto  Him" 36 

Coronation 38 

Creation ___    39 

Crusaders'  Song. 

Rev.  A.  G.  Gordon,  of  Clarendon  Street  Baptist  Church,  Boston. 

Danks,  H.  P.,  1834 76 

Dare  to  be  a  Daniel 40 

Dixon,  William 84 

Doane,  William  Howard,  1831  151,  158,  176 

Dykes,  J.  B.,  1823-1876 54,  84 

Ein'  Feste  Burg 40 

Elliott 43 

Eventide 46 

Ewing,  A.,  1830 _ 69 

Faure,  Jean  Batiste 148 

Federal  Street 48 

Flee  as  a  bird  to  your  Mountain 51 

Folsom 200 

Franck,  Guillaume,  1520-1570 131,  159 

Gently,  Lord,  oh,  gently  lead  us. 

Dr.  Thomas  Hastings  regarded  church  music  as  a  sacred  calling.  Besides  his 
numerous  books  of  church  music  he  wrote  some  six  hundred  hymns. 
Wherever  "  Rock  of  Ages  "  is  sung  his  presence  is  felt.  In  1822  he  wrote  a 
work  on  "Musical  Taste,"  in  which  he  said,  "  Religion  has  the  same  claim 
substantially  in  song  as  in  speech." 

Giardini,  Felice  de,  1716-1796 68,  202 

Giornovichi,  1775-1804 66 

God  is  Love. 

Music  by  G.  H.  Cornell,  1865. 

Grander  than  ocean  strong 52 

Greenville 52 

Gregory  the  Great 136 


INDEX  AND  NOTES.  247 

Guilmant,  Felix  Andre 218 

Hamburg 52 

Handel,  George  Frederick,  16S4-1759 24,  36,  67,  201 

Hark,  hark,  my  soul ! - 1 

Hassler,  Hans  Georg,  1564-1612 145 

Hastings,  Dr.  Thomas,  17S4-1S72 144,155,  17S 

Havergal,  Frances  Ridley 229 

Haydn,  Johann  Michael,  1737-1S0S 198 

Haydn,  Joseph,  1 732-1809 39 

Hebron 53 

He  leadeth  me 53 

Henley 209 

Hinsdale 53 

Holden,  Oliver,  1765-1S44 9,  38 

"Hold  the  fort!" 54 

Holtzman 106 

Holy,  holy,  holy,  Lord  God  Almighty 54,  84 

Holy  night !  peaceful  night ! 
G.  Burnaby,  1868. 

Holyoke,  Samuel,  1762-1816 25 

Home,  sweet  home 56 

Hope 58 

How  precious  the  Name 59 

Hymn  to  the  Nativity 59 

"  I  am  so  glad  that  our  Father  in  heaven  " 60 

•"  If  I  were  a  voice  " 60 

If  with  all  your  hearts 63 

"  If  you  cannot  on  the  ocean  " 65 

"  I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say  " 66 

"  I  know  that  my  Redeemer  liveth  " 67 

Indian  hymn 67 


248  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"  I  need  thee  every  hour" 67 

I  need  thee  every  hour,  I  need  thee  every  hour, 
Most  gracious  Lord  ;  In  joy  or  pain  ; 

No  tender  voice  like  thine  Come  quickly  and  abide, 
Can  peace  afford.  Or  life  is  vain. 

I  need  thee,  oh,  I  need  thee,  I  need  thee  every  hour ; 

Every  hour  I  need  thee;  Teach  me  thy  will ; 

Oh,  bless  me  now,  my  Saviour,  And  thy  rich  promises 

I  come  to  thee !  In  me  fulfil. 

I  need  thee  every  hour  ;  I  need  thee  every  hour, 

Stay  thou  near  by  ;  Most  Holy  One  ; 

Temptations  lose  their  power  Oh,  make  me  thine  indeed, 

When  thou  art  nigh.  Thou  blessed  Son  ! 

MRS.   ANNIE  S.   HAWKS. 

In  a  letter  to  the  author  the  Rev.  Robert  Lowry,  D.  D.,  writes:  " '  I  Need  Thee 
Every  Hour'  was  written  by  Mrs.  Annie  S.  Hawks,  in  1872,  in  Brooklyn, 
N.  Y.  I  believe  it  was  the  expression  of  her  own  experience.  It  came  to  me 
in  the  form  of  five  simple  stanzas,  to  which  I  added  the  chorus  to  make  it 
more  serviceable.  It  inspired  me  at  its  first  reading.  It  first  appeared  in  a 
small  collection  of  original  songs  prepared  for  the  National  Baptist  Sunday- 
school  Association,  held  in  Cincinnati  in  November,  1S72,  and  was  sung  on 
that  occasion." 

Mrs.  Annie  Sherwood  Hawks  was  born  in  New  York  State,  in  1835.  For  some 
years  she  has  resided  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  nutter. 

Ingalls,  Jeremiah,  1764-1838 —59,  129,  208 

In  heavenly  love  abiding. 

(Tune,  "  Goldmark.")  Music  by  Mendelssohn.  Words  by  Anna  L.  Waring,  in 
"  Hymns  and  Meditations,"  London,  1850. 

In  the  cross  of  Christ  I  glory. 
I.  Conkey. 

In  thy  name,  O  Lord,  assembling. 
E.  W.  Hopkins,  London,  1863. 

Italian  Hymn 68 

"  I  was  a  wandering  sheep  " 68 

Jerome,  Frank  E. 27 

"Jerusalem  the  golden" 69 

Jesus  in  the  temple 69 

"Jesus,  the  very  thought  is  sweet." 
Robert  Schumann,  1810-1854. 

Jewels 70 

Jewett 71 


INDEX  AND  NOTES.  249 

"Joyfully,  joyfully  onward  I  move" 73 

The  author  of  the  words  was  probably  Rev.  Wm.  Hunter,  D.  D.  He  was  born 
in  Ireland  in  1S11,  and  came  to  this  country  when  a  child.  In  early  life  he 
labored  untiringly  to  secure  an  education,  and  was  graduated  at  Madison 
College  in  1S33.  He  was  for  some  years  an  editor,  and  then  Professor  of 
Hebrew  and  Biblical  Literature  in  Allegheny  College.  Dr.  Hunter  was  an 
able  preacher  and  a  sound  and  thorough  instructor.  He  was  the  author  of 
a  large  number  of  hymns,  which  appeared  in  his  three  books  of  song,  viz., 
"  Select  Melodies,"  1838-51 ;  "  Minstrel  of  Zion,"  1845  ;  and  "  Songs  of  Devo- 
tion," i860.  NUTTER. 

Judgment  hymn 74 

Just  as  I  am 44 

English  tune  by  Sir  George  G.  Elvey,  born  1816. 

Keller,  Matthias,  1S13 22 

Knocking 75 

Laban 76 

Lake  Street 76 

Lampe's  tunes 77 

Lanesboro 84 

Lansingburg 84 

Latin  Church  children's  carol 201 

Lead,  kindly  Light 84 

Leoni 94 

"  Let  the  lower  lights  be  burning  " 1 100 

"  Life  is  weary,  Saviour,  take  me  " 101 

"  Lift  thine  eyes  " 103 

Lind,  Jenny 231 

Love  divine,  all  love  excelling. 

H.  Isaac,  1490.  The  popular  American  tune  is  a  Scottish  melody.  Isaac's 
music  appears  in  "  The  Tribute  of  Praise." 

Loving-kindness 207 

Lowry,  R.,  1826 67,  160 

Lucas,  James,  1762-1800 208 

I  Luther's  song 200 

Magnificat 103 

Main,  Hubert  P. 181 

II* 


25o  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

"  Majestic  sweetness  sits  enthroned." 
"  Ortonville,"  by  Dr.  Hastings. 

Majesty 104 

The  Lord  descended  from  above  He  sat  serene  upon  the  floods, 
And  bowed  the  heavens  most  high,  Their  fury  to  restrain; 

And  underneath  his  feet  he  east  And  he,  as  sovereign  Lord  and  King, 
The  darkness  of  the  sky.  For  evermore  shall  reign. 

On  cherubim  and  seraphim  Give  glory  to  his  awful  name, 
Full  royally  he  rode,  And  honor  him  alone  ; 

And  on  the  wings  of  mighty  winds  Give  worship  to  his  majesty 
Came  flying  all  abroad.  Upon  his  holy  throne. 

THOMAS   STERNHOLD,   ALT. 

Marseillaise  Hymn 106 

Marsh,  Symeon  B.,  1798-1875 108 

Martyn 108 

Mason,  Lowell,  1792-1872  , 24,  32,  43,  52,  53,  76,  114,  120,  134,  209 

Maxim's  Melodies 109 

McAuley,  Jerry 223 

McDonald,  William 155 

Merrill,  A.  D.,  1796-1878 73 

Merton in 

Millennial  Dawn 113 

Miller,  James 184 

Missionary  Hymn 113 

Monk,  Henry,  1823 46 

Monson 114 

"  More  like  Jesus  would  I  be." 

Composed  by  Dr.  Doane  for  the  Howard  Mission,  New  York,  to  words  written 
by  Fanny  Crosby  during  a  season  of  devotion. 

"  More  to  follow  " 119 

Mozart 200 

Mozart,  J.  C.  VV.  A.,  1756-1791  200 

Mt.  Vernon 120 

Muhlenberg 121 

My  ain  countrie 124 


INDEX  AND  NO  TES.  25 1 

Nares,  James,  1715-1783 23 

Neumarck,  George,  1621-1681 101 

Neander,  Joachim,  1610-16S0 84 

New  England  Anthem  fur  Easter 208 

Ninety  and  nine    126 

Northfield 129 

O  Church  of  Christ 130 

"Oh,  how  happy  are  they  !" 209 

Old  Hundred 131 

Old  revival  melodies 207 

Oliver,  Henry  K.,  1800-1885 48>  II2 

Olivet 134 

Olney. 

This  tune  was  selected  by  Charles  Wesley  for  his  hymn,  "A  charge  to  keep  I 
have." 

Olmutz 136 

O  Christ,  our  King,  Creator,  Lord,  Thou  didst  create  the  stars  of  night, 

Saviour  of  all  who  trust  thy  word,  Yet  thou  hast  veiled  in  flesh  thy  light, 

To  them  who  seek  thee  ever  near,  Hast  deigned  a  mortal  form  to  wear, 

Now  to  our  praises  bend  thine  ear.         A  mortal's  painful  lot  to  bear. 

In  thy  dear  cross  a  grace  is  found,  When  thou  didst  hang  upon  the  tree, 

It  flows  from  every  streaming  wound,  The  quaking  earth  acknowledged  thee  ; 

Whose  power  our  inbred  sin  controls,  When  thou   didst    there  yield  up  thy 
Breaks  the  firm  bond  and  frees  our  breath, 

souls.  The  world  grew  dark  as  shades  of  death. 

Now  in  the  Father's  glory  high, 
Great  Conqueror,  never  more  to  die, 
Us  by  thy  mighty  power  defend, 
And  reign  through  ages  without  end. 

GREGORY  THE  GREAT. 

TR.  BY  R.  PALMER. 

Title:  "The  Lordship  of  Christ." 

This  translation  was  contributed  to  "  The  Sabbath  Hymn-Book. "     185S. 

The  Latin  title  is  "  Rex  Ckriste,  Factor  omniutn." 

Gregory  was  born  in  Rome  about  541,  was  well  educated,  and  in  early  life  was 
in  the  employ  of  the  State.  Upon  the  death  of  his  father  he  inherited  great 
wealth,  much  of  which  he  spent  in  building  monasteries.  He  founded  St. 
Andrew's  at  Rome,  which  he  entered  as  a  deacon.  Upon  the  death  of  Pekv 
gius,  Bishop  of  Rome,  Gregory  was  chosen  by  the  clergy  and  people  as  his 
successor.  The  Emperor  Maurice  confirmed  the  election,  and,  much  against 
his  will,  it  is  said,  Gregory  was  installed  Pope  in  595.     He  was  a  student  of 


252 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 


the  Scriptures,  and  labored  to  circulate  them  among  the  people.  He  was 
also  a  founder  and  patron  of  missions,  that  to  England  among  others.  The 
Bishop  of  Rome  did  not  then  arrogate  to  himself  universal  sovereignty.  John, 
Patriarch  of  Constantinople,  about  this  time  assumed  the  title  of  Universal 
Bishop;  which  act  Gregory  called  "proud,  heretical,  blasphemous,  anti- 
Christian,  and  diabolical ;"  and  in  opposition  thereto  he  assumed  the  title  of 
"  Servant  of  servants  "  (Servus  servorum  Domini).  He  claimed  that  Christ 
was  the  only  universal  Head  of  the  Church.  Gregory  was  a  lover  of  sacred 
music,  and  cultivated  chanting  in  the  church  service.  nutter. 

Once  in  David's  royal  city. 
Dr.  H.  G.  Gauntlett,  1806-1876. 

One  sweetly  solemn  thought 140 

The  English  chant  to  this  is  by  L.  T.  Downes,  born  1824. 

"  Only  remembered  " 141 

Onward,  Christian  soldiers 141 

Onward,  Christian  soldiers  !  Like  a  mighty  army 

Marching  as  to  war,  Moves  the  church  of  God  ; 

With  the  cross  of  Jesus  Brothers,  we  are  treading 

Going  on  before.  Where  the  saints  have  trod  ; 

Christ,  the  royal  Master,  We  are  not  divided, 

Leads  against  the  foe ;  All  one  body  we, 

Forward  into  battle,  One  in  hope  and  doctrine, 

See,  his  banners  go !  One  in  charity. 

Crowns  and  thrones  may  perish, 
Kingdoms  rise  and  wane, 
Onward,  Christian  soldiers  !  But  the  Church  of  Jesus 

Marching  as  to  war,  Constant  will  remain  ; 

With  the  cross  of  Jesus  Gates  of  hell  can  never 

Going  on  before.  'Gainst  that  Church  prevail ; 

We  have  Christ's  own  promise, 
And  that  cannot  fail. 

At  the  sign  of  triumph  Onward,  then,  ye  people! 

Satan's  host  doth  flee  ;  Join  our  happy  throng, 

On,  then,  Christian  soldiers,  Blend  with  ours  your  voices 

On  to  victory  !  In  the  triumph-song ; 

Hell's  foundations  quiver  Glory,  laud,  and  honor 

At  the  shout  of  praise  ;  Unto  Christ  the  King, 

Brothers,  lift  your  voices,  This  through  countless  ages 

Loud  your  anthems  raise.  Men  and  angels  sing. 

Sabine  Baring-Gould,  born  1834.   The  hymn  was  published  in  "  Church  Tunes," 
1865,  and  in  "  Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern,"  1875. 

O  Paradise 143 

Ortonville - __-  144 

"  O  sacred  Head,  now  wounded  " 145 


INDEX  AND  NOTES. 

Osborne,  John 33 

Paine,  John  Knowles,  1S39 59 

Palestrina 147 

Palestrina,  Giovanni,  1524-1594 147 

Palm  branches 

Palmer,  Rev.  Ray,  D.  D 226 

Parker,  J.  C.  D.,  1S2S 151 

Phillips,  Philip,  1S34 65 

Pleyel,  Ignatius,  1757-1S31   7,  149 

Pleyel's  Hymn 149 

Portugal,  Marcus,  1763-1S34 15 

Portuguese  Hymn 150 

Praise  meetings 12,  221 

Pull  for  the  shore 150 

Redemption  hymn 151 

"  Rescue  the  perishing"' 151 

Rest  for  the  weary 155 

Retreat 155 

Rock  of  ages   15S 

The  popular  hymn  tune  is  by  Hastings- 
Root,  George  F.,  1S20 9,  69,  70,  75,  130,  166 

Rousseau,  Jean  Jacques,  1712-177S 52 

Safe  in  the  arms  of  Jesus 158 

Salve  Regina 159 

Sankey,  Ira  D.    126 

Scotch  minor  tunes  159 

Seeking  to  save 160 

"  Shall  we  gather  at  the  river?" 160 

Sherwin,  \\\,  1826 52 

Shining  shore 166 

Sicily 167 

"Silent  night!  holy  night !" 198 


254      THE  STOR  Y  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Siloam 167 

Simpson,  Robert,  1790-1832 27 

Sometimes  a  light  surprises. 
John  Hullah,  in  1867. 

St.  Andrew's 16S 

Stebbins,  G.  C,  1S46 32 

Stickney,  John,  1742-1826 204 

Still,  still  with  Thee. 

Music  adapted  from  Mendelssohn,  1809-1847. 

St.  Martin's 168 

Sullivan,  Sir  Arthur  S.,  1842 141 

Swan,  Timothy,  1758-1842 35 

Sweet  Afton. 

By  J.  E.  Spilman.     Adapted  to  sacred  words. 

Sweet  By-and-by 16S 

Sweet  hour  of  prayer 168 

Tallis'  evening  hymn 169 

Tallis,  Thomas 169 

Tansur,  William,  1699-1770 168 

"  Te  Deum  Laudamus  " 172 

"  Tell  me  the  old,  old  story" 176 

The  better  land 177 

"  The  breaking  waves  dashed  high  " 177 

The  endless  Hallelujah! 198 

The  garden  hymn 208 

"  The  light  of  the  world  is  Jesus  "  __ 177 

The  living  fountain. 
Henry  Smart,  1868. 

The  Lord  is  my  Shepherd. 

English  Church  service.  By  Henry  Smart,  London,  1S13-1879.  It  would  be 
impossible  here  to  give  a  long  and  exhaustive  account  of  the  life  and  labors 
of  Henry  Smart,  although  his  name  must  be  included  among  representative 
English  Church  composers,  if  only  for  the  sake  of  his  noble  Service  in  F, 
which  is  well  known  and  deservedly  popular.  A  paraphrase  of  the  twenty- 
third  Psalm,  "  The  Lord  is  my  Shepherd,"  is  also  a  great  favorite,  and  there 


INDEX  AND  NOTES.  255 

are  many  of  his  anthems  occasionally  given,  even  if  they  are  not  so  widely 
known  as  they  might  be.  It  is  true  that  all  these  compositions  are  excellent, 
but,  unlike  his  organ  music  and  his  secular  writings,  they  do  not  represent 
any  distinct  rank  in  art,  though  they  most  worthily  maintain  a  dignity  of 
style.  As  a  musician,  the  great  honor  he  has  earned  is  more  for  his  power 
as  a  composer  for  the  organ  and  for  his  charming  songs  and  graceful  part- 
songs,  than  for  his  anthems  and  pieces  for  the  church.  In  addition  to  those 
above  mentioned  he  wrote  a  fine  evening  Service  in  G,  and  one  in  B  flat,  and 
a  number  of  most  beautiful  hymn  tunes  in  various  collections  which  entitle 
him  to  special  distinction. 
He  also  composed  a  sacred  cantata  entitled  "Jacob,"  written  for  Glasgow  in 
and  many  sacred  sonssand  duets  which  belong  properly  to  the  region 
of  domestic  music.  Much  of  his  organ  music  is  frequently  played  in  churches, 
and  speaks  of  a  mind  of  no  common  order. 

ENGLISH   CHURCH   COMPOSERS. 

The  messenger-bird 177 

11  There  are  angels  hovering  round" 208 

There  is  a  blessed  home. 
John  Stainer. 

There  is  a  green  hill  far  away. 

Richard  Storrs  Willis,  in  1S60;  also  by  Pensuti. 

There  is  a  happy  land 178 

Recent  music  by  S.  S.  Wesley,  1864. 

Thomson,  George,  1757-1S51 25 

To-day  the  Saviour  calls. 

Music  by  Lowell  Mason  to  words  by  Dr.  Hastings.  The  latter  composer  wrote 
several  beautiful  hymns  of  spiritual  invitation,  among  them,  "  To-day  the 
Saviour  calls,"  and  "  Expostulation,"  beginning: 

Delay  not,  delay  not,  O  sinner ;  draw  near  ; 

The  waters  of  life  are  now  flowing  for  thee  ; 
No  price  is  demanded  ;  the  Saviour  is  here ; 

Redemption  is  purchased,  salvation  is  free. 

Delay  not,  delay  not,  O  sinner,  to  come, 
For  Mercy  still  lingers  and  calls  thee  to-day: 

Her  voice  is  not  heard  in  the  vale  of  the  tomb  ; 
Her  message  unheeded  will  soon  pass  away. 

"To-day  the  Saviour  calls  '*  was  a  theme  furnished  Dr.  Hastings  by  Rev.  S.  F. 
Smith. 

Toplady 178 

Tourjee,  Dr.  Eben  12,  140 

Tourjee,  Lizzie  S. 


256  THE  STORY  OF  THE  TUNES. 

Turner. 

One  of  Maxim's  tunes. 

Union  hymn 207 

Unity  ("  When  shall  we  meet  again  ?") 
Lowell  Mason. 

When  shall  we  meet  again  ?  Up  to  that  world  of  light 

Meet  ne'er  to  sever?  Take  us,  dear  Saviour  ! 

When  will  peace  wreathe  her  chain  May  we  all  there  unite, 

Round  us  for  ever?  Happy  for  ever  ! 

Our  hearts  will  ne'er  repose,  Where  kindred  spirits  dwell, 

Safe  from  each  blast  that  blows,  There  may  our  music  swell, 

In  this  dark  vale  of  woes:  And  time  our  joys  dispel 

Never,  no,  never !  Never,  no,  never ! 

When  shall  love  freely  flow  Soon  shall  we  meet  again, 

Pure  as  life's  river  ?  Meet  ne'er  to  sever ; 

When  shall  sweet  friendship  glow,  Soon  will  peace  wreathe  her  chain 

Changeless  for  ever?  Round  us  for  ever: 

Where  joys  celestial  thrill,  Our  hearts  will  then  repose, 

Where  bliss  each  heart  shall  fill,  Secure  from  worldly  woes: 

And  fears  of  parting  chill  Our  songs  of  praise  shall  close 

Never,  no,  never !  Never,  no,  never ! 

Mr.  Mason  found  the  first  stanza  of  this  hymn,  which  was  written  by  A.  A. 
Watts,  poet,  London,  1797-1864.  He  gave  it  to  Rev.  S.  F.  Smith  as  a  hymn- 
study  for  his  music.     Mr.  Smith  wrote  the  last  three  stanzas. 

"  Watchman,  tell  us  of  the  night." 
Lowell  Mason,  in  1830. 

Watch  night 208 

Webb 179 

Webb,  George  James,  1803-1887  ^ 113,  179 

Webbe,  Samuel,  1740-1816 31 

Weber,  Carl  Maria  von,  1786-1826 71 

Webster,  J.  P.,  1819-1875 168 

"Welcome,  happy  morning" 179 

Weley 215 

Wellesley 180 

We  march  to  victory. 

Joseph  Barnby,  in  1869. 
"  We  're  going  home  to-morrow  " 180 

"  We  shall  meet  beyond  the  river  " 181 

The  popular  tune  to  this  funeral  hymn  was  written  by  Hubert  P.  Main,  in  1867, 
and  published  in  "  Bright  Jewels."    It  also  appears  in  "  Winnowed  Hymns" 


JXDEX  AND  NOTES.  257 

and  in  Moody  and  Sankey's  collections.  Tlie  words  were  written  by  Rev. 
John  Atkinson,  D.  D.,  in  1867,  soon  after  the  death  of  his  mother.  One  night 
amid  revival  work  he  returned  home  and  his  thoughts  were  of  his  mother. 
The  song  came  to  him.  "  There  in  the  silence  of  midnight,"  he  says,  "  I 
wrote  the  hymn." 

"  What  shall  the  harvest  be?" 181 

When,  His  salvation  bringing. 
Berthold  Tours. 

"  When  Jesus  comes  " 183 

When,  marshalled  on  the  nightly  plain 184 

"  When  shall  the  voice  of  singing." 

Rev.  G.  S.  Lederbotham,  Oxford,  England. 

Whiting,  George  E. 217 

"  Whosoever  will  " 184 

Windham. 

Daniel  Read  of  New  Haven,  1757-1838. 

With  gladsome  feet  we  press. 
George  A.  McFarren,  in  1867. 

Woodbury,  I.  B.,  1819-1858 60,  167 

"Yes,  my  native  land,  I  love  thee  " 189 

Zinzendorfs  hymn 192 

Zundel,  John,  1815-1882 68 


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